Passenger Transport: December 1, 2023

FO EV RT ER NI Y GH T

ISSUE 302 1 DECEMBER 2023

NEWS, VIEWS AND ANALYSIS FOR A SECTOR ON THE MOVE

UK cities need million Deal could see gain more more bus and rail users LCR rail powers NEWS

Britain’s big cities should significantly increase public transport commuters to catch up with European counterparts, says Centre for Cities think tank The number of people taking public transport to work in the UK’s large cities is much lower than European counterparts and catching up will require doubling the number of regular commuters using a bus, train or tram according to the Centre for Cities think tank.

The UK’s big cities outside of London are outliers and would need nearly one million (963,000) additional workers taking public transport to work to bridge the gap with other cities overseas.

16% of Manchester residents and 18% of Birmingham residents commute to work using public transport, compared to 40% in Hamburg and 33% in Lyon, two

European cities of similar size.

In a new report published in partnership with Go-Ahead, Gear shift: International lessons for increasing public transport ridership in UK cities, Centre for Cities says the gap is due to the smaller average transport network size and less dense residential neighbourhoods in the UK’s big

“It’s vital that modern, dynamic cities encourage more people onto public transport”

Miguel Parras, Go-Ahead

cities, meaning they will need help to achieve this ambition.

Evidence shows there are fewer car journeys done in large European cities thanks to their greater reliance on public transport compared to the big cities in the UK. For example, if Liverpool were to perform like Leipzig (a city of similar size), there would be 33,000 fewer workers commuting to work using a car or taxi, a reduction of 20%.

Miguel Parras, group chief executive of Go-Ahead, said: “It’s vital that modern, dynamic cities encourage more people onto public transport if they’re to tackle congestion and pollution.”

CONTINUED ON PAGE 07

04

New memorandum of understanding

NET ZERO

FirstGroup and Hitachi agree battery venture

12

Group’s CEO hails strategic partnership

COMMENT

Transport must wait as election looms

14

Norman Baker sees a period of paralysis

COMMENT

Hit or miss: are targets achieveable?

18

Nick Richardson on the use of targets

CAREERS

Women in Bus and Coach A BUS-LOAD OF WINNERS Winners celebate on stage at this week’s UK Bus Awards in London. Full story on page 5

PT302p01.indd 1

22

New network visits House of Commons

30/11/2023 16:40

PT302p02.indd 3

30/11/2023 15:42

CONTENTS

PASSENGER TRANSPORT PO Box 5496, Westbury BA13 9BX 020 3950 8000 editorial@passengertransport.co.uk

Bus awards reveal the efforts to bounce back Lothian’s service 19 was surprisingly busy when I boarded it around 5:45am last Tuesday. It seemed fitting that a bus would take me on the first leg of my journey to the UK Bus Awards in London, and it was a reminder of the vital role that this mode of Robert Jack transport plays. As we glided freely to Edinburgh’s Managing Editor Waverley station it was also a reminder of how fast and efficient buses can be when they aren’t bogged down in traffic!

I don’t think I have missed a UK Bus Awards since starting out as a rookie reporter in 1998 and, as always, it was well worth the trip.

It’s a great opportunity to meet people and to learn about dedicated employees and great initiatives across the country. This year was no different, with an incredible number of entries. More than 700 people gathered in the grandeur of east London’s Troxy to learn about the 23 winners and the runners-up (see a summary on page 5 and look out for the official ‘Big Book of Big Winners 2023’ with your next edition of Passenger Transport). Many of them displayed determination and ingenuity in their efforts to build back patronage in the wake of a pandemic that fundamentally altered travel patterns.

Congratulations from us to all of the winners. It was great to have a beer with some of them, and even better to learn later that an automatic Delay Repay payment from my journey home will cover the bill! Lothian’s service 5 arrived at five minutes past midnight for the final leg of my journey - and, once again, it was surprisingly busy.

HAVE YOUR SAY Contact us with your news, views and opinion at: editorial@passengertransport.co.uk PASSENGER TRANSPORT editorial@passengertransport.co.uk forename.surname@ passengertransport.co.uk Telephone: 020 3950 8000 Managing Editor & Publisher Robert Jack Deputy Editor Andrew Garnett Contributing Writer Rhodri Clark Directors Chris Cheek, Andrew Garnett, Robert Jack OFFICE CONTACT DETAILS Passenger Transport Publishing Ltd PO Box 5496, Westbury BA13 9BX, UNITED KINGDOM Telephone (all enquiries): 020 3950 8000

EDITORIAL editorial@passengertransport.co.uk ADVERTISING ads@passengertransport.co.uk SUBSCRIPTIONS subs@passengertransport.co.uk ACCOUNTS accounts@passengertransport.co.uk Passenger Transport is only available by subscription.

Subscription rates per year; UK £140 (despatch by Royal Mail post); Worldwide (airmail) £280 The editor welcomes written contributions and photographs, which should be sent to the above address. All rights reserved. No

www.passengertransport.co.uk

PT302p03.indd 3

part of this publication may be reproduced in whole or in part without the publisher’s written permission.

Printed by Cambrian Printers Ltd, Stephens & George Print Group, Goat Mill Road, Dowlaid, Merthyr Tydfil CF48 3TD © Passenger Transport Publishing Ltd 2023 ISSN 2046-3278 SUBSCRIPTIONS HOTLINE 020 3950 8000

IN THIS ISSUE 22

WOMEN IN BUS AND COACH VISIT COMMONS

07

AUTUMN STATEMENT A ‘MISSED OPPORTUNITY’

16

A MOOD-LIFTING TRIP SHOULD START WITH US

20

WHERE’S THE WILL TO PROGRESS THIS BILL?

Women in Bus and Coach, the initiative to support women in the sector, were welcomed by the All-Party Parliamentary Group for the Road Passenger Transport Industry at an event hosted at the House of Commons last week.

ORGANISATION

PAGE

Adventure Travel 10 Alexander Dennis 6, 8 Arriva North East 5 Brighton & Hove Buses 5 Campaign for Better Transport 7 CPT (UK) 7 East Midlands Railway 9 FirstGroup 12 FlixBus UK 5 Go-Ahead Group 1, 5, 7 Go North East 5, 8 Go South Coast 5 Grand Central 9 Hitachi ZeroCarbon 12 Mellor 6 Merseyrail 4 National Express West Midlands 5 Network Rail 4 Northern Rail 4 Office of Rail and Road 9 Oxford Bus Company 12 Rail Partners 9 RMT 7, 8 Rotala 6 Saunders Coaches 5 Stagecoach Cumbria & North Lancs 5 Stagecoach East 5 Stagecoach Group 5, 8 Stagecoach London 5 Stagecoach Manchester 5 Stagecoach Merseyside 4, 5 Stagecoach Wales 10 Stagecoach Yorkshire 5 Ticketer 5 Transdev Blazefield 5 Transport for Wales 10, 11 Unite the Union 5, 8 Zenobe 5, 12

There was little enthusiasm within the public transport sector for last week’s Autumn Statement, with the chancellor not taking the opportunity to replicate the recent investment for buses in the North and the Midlands across the rest of the country.

Alex Warner argues that public transport isn’t just about essential journeys. He writes: “There are swathes of bus and rail routes that are not just interesting journeys but they serve places where there are wonderful experiences to be enjoyed.”

Our Whitehall insider imagines what’s going on inside the minds of the mandarins at Great Minster House, home of the Department for Transport.

“Where there’s a political will, there’s a political way. Which means there can be only one conclusion from all of this: there is no political will.”

REGULARS NEWS NET ZERO COMMENT GRUMBLES CAREERS DIVERSIONS

03 12 14 20 22 24

1 December 2023 | 03

30/11/2023 17:16

NEWS ROUND-UP

Deal could see LCR gain greater rail powers Memorandum of understanding aims to explore potential for Liverpool City Region having greater control over the region’s local rail network DEVOLUTION

Transport secretary Mark Harper and Steve Rotheram, mayor of the Liverpool City Region, have signed a memorandum of understanding aimed at enhancing Liverpool’s transport network.

The agreement involves increased collaboration between the government and the city region to realise plans for a fully integrated public transport system in Merseyside. Signatories include the transport secretary, Liverpool City Region Combined Authority, Network Rail, and the Great British Railways Transition Team.

The MoU is poised to pave the way for greater powers to build a fully integrated, reliable and affordable service with transparent management.

Discussions could take place about how to better integrate infrastructure and regeneration

Rotheram: ‘Deal marks new wave of devolution’

opportunities between the rail industry and the combined authority.

This could lead to the region having a greater say over investments to create better station facilities, improve network performance and capacity and timetable enhancements, as well as speeding up the delivery of

Merseyside night bus service restored Service withdrawn in 2020 due to Covid-19 lockdown NETWORKS

Night bus services are to return to Merseyside as part of a new trial being launched by the Liverpool City Region. The N1 service, which will be operated

by Stagecoach Merseyside, will connect Birkenhead and Allerton via Liverpool city

04 | 1 December 2023 PT302p04-05.indd 4

centre every Friday, Saturday and Sunday night.

Steve Rotheram, mayor of the Liverpool City Region, has worked with local campaign groups, students and the hospitality industry to reinstate the service, which had previously been withdrawn by operators

projects to improve services for local people and deliver best value for money. The government said the agreement aligns with its commitment to empower local authorities and prioritise the needs of local communities.

The MoU coincides with the government’s announcement of £12bn for its Network North

during the Covid-19 pandemic and associated lockdowns.

“This a massive result for local people, many who have been campaigning for this moment for three years,” said Rotheram. “Following our decision to take back control of the region’s buses and move towards a franchised system, this is another positive step on the journey to putting the public back at the heart of public transport.”

plan, aimed at improving connections between Manchester and Liverpool. This funding will support the implementation of Northern Powerhouse Rail, including high-speed lines.

The MoU was formalised at the opening of Headbolt Lane station in Kirkby, the newest train station in the country, funded by £80m of government support. It acts as the new terminus for Merseyrail and Northern services, which offers improved connections to the centre of Liverpool, Wigan and Manchester, as well as better connectivity to the region’s bus services.

“Today’s agreement demonstrates this government’s commitment to transforming public transport across the country and empowering elected leaders to make decisions based on the priorities of local people,” said Harper.

Rotheram added: “This deal signifies not only a massive moment for our region - but the start of a new wave of devolution for the country. It puts us on track to open up the right conversations around how we can improve our rail network for the better and run it in the best interests of passengers.”

In alignment with the government’s Network North plan, the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority has received additional funding, including £1bn from the City Region Sustainable Transport Settlements and £600m from the decision to cancel Phase 2 of HS2, more than double the city’s previous funding allocation.

The region was the first area outside of London to take control of its local rail network with management of the Merseyrail concession since 2003. Rotheram has previously argued for further devolution of local rail services. www.passengertransport.co.uk

30/11/2023 16:42

Go South Coast wins best operator award Go-Ahead-owned operator won coveted prize at ceremony in London this week, but Stagecoach topped the ‘medal table’ with 16 winners in total AWARDS

Go South Coast was named UK Bus Operator at this week’s UK Bus Awards in London. The Go-Ahead Group-owned company was also named the winner of the Gold Award in the Top Shire Operator category before fending off competition from Brighton and Hove Buses and Norfolk-based operator Saunders Coaches to win the top gong in the Grand-Prix competition that pits the winners of the Top City, Top Shire and Top Independent Operator Awards against one another.

More than 700 people attended the presentation ceremony, which took place at Troxy, London, on November 27. It was another rewarding afternoon for Stagecoach and its subsidiary companies. Britain’s biggest bus operator once again topped the medal table with a total of 16 Gold, Silver and Bronze winners.

The Perth-based group was the gold winner in six of the event’s 23 categories: Bus and the Community (Behind the Bus, Stagecoach East); Buses for Leisure (Lake District services, Stagecoach Cumbria and North Lancashire); London Bus Garage of the Year (Lea Interchange,Stagecoach London); Manager of the Year (Dawn Murphy, Stagecoach Yorkshire); Top National Bus Depot (Middleton, Stagecoach Manchester); Young Manager of the Year www.passengertransport.co.uk

PT302p04-05.indd 5

Go South Coast was named UK Bus Operator of the Year

(Richard Greaves, Stagecoach Manchester).

Stagecoach was also the joint Gold winner of the Partnership for Excellence: The Peter Huntley Memorial Award, alongside Arriva North East, Go North East and Nexus.

Go-Ahead Group’s afternoon was marred by a protest outside the venue by Unite the Union in relation to a pay dispute at its Go North East subsidiary. However,

THE MEDAL TABLE: UKBA 2023

Stagecoach Go-Ahead Transdev Blazefield McGill’s NCT RATP Dev London Sanders Coaches Arriva Reading Buses Other

G

S

B

6 4 2 1 1 1 1 0 0 7

5 3 1 3 1 1 0 1 0 7

5 3 0 0 1 1 2 2 2 6

16 10 3 4 3 3 3 3 2 20

the group went home with an impressive haul of 10 medals.

It was also a successful afternoon for Transdev Blazefield, which was Gold winner in the Enriching the Customer Experience Award for ‘de-stressing the bus’. This initiative was aimed at rebuilding passenger numbers in the wake of the pandemic, with a high quality and well-presented fleet, engaged and enthusiastic people and a proactive approach to publicity.

Meanwhile, Maruisz Losinski, was Gold winner of the Top National Bus Driver Award.

This year’s award for Lifetime Contribution to the Bus Industry went to John Clarfelt, founder of Ticketer. Clarfelt’s journey to Ticketer was unusual: from qualified barrister to butcher and entrepreneur, but today the company’s ticketing technology can be found on thousands of trams, trains, ferries and hovercraft across the world, as

well as thousands of buses in the UK. Another notable winner was National Express West Midlands and Zenobe. They were Gold winners of the Environmental Innovation Award for ‘Electrification as a Service’, a UK-first which has seen Zenobe manage a full turnkey solution including new vehicles, onboard battery replacement, charging infrastructure, unique software to optimise charging, parts, and full operational support. The scheme also utilises a second life battery made from recycled bus battery cells, which stores the power from solar panels on the depot roof.

Meanwhile, fast-expanding FlixBus UK won the Going for Growth award.

Expressing his admiration for this year’s cohort of winners, Alan Millar, chair of the UK Bus Awards, said: “In a year that has tested the resilience of our industry, the UK Bus Awards 2023 stands as a testament to the unwavering commitment and brilliance of those who keep the wheels of the bus industry turning.

“The dedication, innovation, and community spirit reaffirm the pivotal role of the bus in connecting people and communities. From seasoned players to new entrants, we’ve celebrated their successes, innovations, and contributions.

BIG BOOK OF BIG WINNERS Full details of all Gold, Silver and Bronze winners can be found in The Big Book of Big Winners 2023, the official UK Bus Awards souvenir brochure. This publication is produced for the UK Bus Awards

by Passenger Transport and will be distributed with the next issue of Passenger Transport, as well as future editions of BUSES and Coach and Bus Week.

1 December 2023 | 05

30/11/2023 16:46

NEWS ROUND-UP

Mellor parent company enters administration Move follows attempts to sell WN VTech as a going concern MANUFACTURERS

The future of Rochdale-based minibus manufacturer and zeroemission bus specialist Mellor is at risk after parent company WN VTech slid into administration 0n November 23. It follows attempts to sell the business as a going concern in recent weeks.

Teneo has been appointed to oversee the administration process at WN VTech which not only owns Mellor but sister company Treka as well as a number of other business manufacturing specialist vehicles.

Previously known as Woodall Nicholson, the group was acquired by private equity firm Rutland Partners in March 2020.

Lancashire-based WN VTech reported a loss of almost £2.6m for 2022, down from £5m, and a turnover of £78m. Media reports

ROTALA TO GO PRIVATE IN 2024

Directors behind buyout that values group at £23.5m ACQUISITIONS

AIM-listed bus group Rotala is set to shift from its publicly-traded status to private ownership in early 2024 after a takeover offer that values the group at £23.5m.

The decision follows the recommendation of three independent directors of the group.

They have endorsed the offer of 63.5p per share which has been made by three Rotala directors, their spouses and a personal pension 06 | 1 December 2023 PT302p06-07.indd 6

have suggested that Rutland had injected £5m into the business in recent months in a bid to keep the business afloat.

According to documents filed with Companies House, WN VTech Holdings employed almost 500 people during 2022. WN VTech Limited employed a total of 230 staff, Treka Bus Limited employed 69, Vehicle Conversion Specialists Limited employed 111,

Promech Technologies Limited employed 41 and JM Engineering (Scarborough) Limited employed 19 people.

A statement from Teneo said: “Like many companies in the automotive sector, the group has experienced challenges around supply chain issues which has impacted fulfilment of orders and working capital. The joint administrators are continuing

Mellor’s Scarborough facility

plan linked to Rotala chairman John Gunn. Prior to making their bid, these individuals already controlled 41.2% of the group.

Rotala Group, a new private entity, has been established explicitly for the acquisition. The key figues behind the new company are Rotala chief executive Simon Dunn, his father Bob Dunn, who is also managing director of Rotala’s operations in the north west of England and Gunn.

Simon Dunn and Bob Dunn will serve as directors in the newlyformed company, with Gunn retaining his role as company chairman.

In a statement the three Rotala directors explained that they felt the group’s listing “no longer represents good value for Rotala and its shareholders, providing limited share price growth and access to equity capital while incurring material costs and carrying a regulatory burden”.

They continued: “Should Rotala remain publicly quoted on AIM, it would continue to find it difficult to attract and retain sufficient interest from institutional investors and research coverage in its activities to generate stock liquidity and a level of market rating that would make retaining its existing AIM quotation worthwhile.”

to trade all businesses as usual, while exploring opportunities for a sale.”

Mellor has expanded significantly in recent years on the back of growing enthusiasm for its minibus products. More recently it had expanded its product range to include full size fully electric buses. These vehicles - the Sigma range - are assembled in China by a manufacturing partner based there, but finished at a new facility established by Mellor at Scarborough adjacent to Alexander Dennis’s facility.

Last May Rutland Partners revealed that WN VTech had seen “a twofold year-on-year growth in orders following five years of successive top-line revenue growth”. “Order book levels soared over the £100m mark in December 2021, and 2022 has started equally strongly,” the private equity specialist claimed.

However, industry insiders have suggested that the UK bus market has become increasingly competitive with the entry of a number of new players in the already increasingly crowded zero-emission bus market in recent years.

The new owners plan to invest in and support the expansion of Rotala’s established operations by acquiring bus depots across the UK. They said their aim is to maintain operational excellence and seek efficiencies in a simplified corporate structure that would reduce the regulatory burden and costs stemming from the AIM listing.

The group was formed in 2005 and has grown through the acquisition and amalgamation of local coach and bus operations since then. Rotala now has a fleet of 700 vehicles and more than 1,900 members of staff with bases in the south east, Midlands and north west of England. www.passengertransport.co.uk

30/11/2023 16:42

Autumn Statement was ‘missed opportunity’ CPT and Campaign for Better Transport express concerns POLICY

There was little enthusiasm within the public transport sector for last week’s Autumn Statement by chancellor Jeremy Hunt.

The Confederation of Passenger Transport, the trade association for the bus and coach sector, said that the £2bn earmarked to support the manufacturing, supply chain and development of zero emission vehicles is “potentially good news for the bus and coach sector”.

“The government now needs to ensure a significant proportion of this funding is invested in delivering greater battery ranges for buses and coaches and a sustainable model for hydrogen fuel cells, to accelerate the bus

and coach sectors’ transition to zero emission,” said CPT’s CEO, Graham Vidler.

However, Vidler lamented that the chancellor’s announcement had missed the chance to “complete” the National Bus Strategy for England, after the welcome funding for services in the North and Midlands last month.

He said: “It is a shame ... that the chancellor has not taken the opportunity today to replicate the recent investment for buses in the North and the Midlands across

“Communities in the South are at risk of being left behind”

Graham Vidler, CPT

and private, working CITIES NEED MORE public towards a common goal.”

PUBLIC TRANSPORT Centre for Cities outlines

Continued from Page 1

Parras continued: “Easy to navigate transport hubs, bus priority measures and better planning around stations can make a big difference, as the Centre for Cities’ report points out.

“Any successful public transport system needs to blend clear thinking from a central transport authority with the entrepreneurial flair of private operators - whether that’s on bus, rail or light rail.

In some cities, that can mean franchising, while in others it might simply mean a close, cooperative partnership between www.passengertransport.co.uk

PT302p06-07.indd 7

several policy measures drawing evidence from London and cities overseas that have higher levels of public transport use (see panel).

“What these policy recommendations are aiming for is finding that extra gear so we can bring more people into our city centres during working hours, quicker and, preferably, cheaper too,” said Andrew Carter, chief executive at Centre for Cities.

“In order to get there and find that extra gear, we need to look at different policy measures from around the world, look at how they are funded, look at where we can bring in extra revenues,

the rest of the country. Frequent, fast, reliable buses are required by millions of people every day to get to work, school, and access essential services. Communities in the South are at risk of being left behind without matched investment. This should not be a postcode lottery.”

Meanwhile, Ben Curtis from pressure group Campaign for Better Transport said: “We are disappointed that the chancellor did not include any transport measures in his Autumn Statement today, despite a focus on lifting people out of poverty.

We know that a lack of access to affordable public transport contributes to financial inequality, unemployment and social isolation, so transport should be at the heart of government investment priorities.”

RMT MEMBERS ACCEPT PAY OFFER No compulsory redundancies in 2024 INDUSTRIAL RELATIONS

GRUMBLES: PAGES 20-21

Members of the RMT union have voted to accept a pay offer from the Rail Delivery Group.

General secretary Mick Lynch said: “Our members have spoken in huge numbers to accept this unconditional pay offer and no compulsory redundancies until the end of 2024.

I want to congratulate them on their steadfastness in this long industrial campaign. We will be negotiating further with the train operators over reforms they want to see.”

An RDG spokesperson commented: “This welcome vote from RMT members will unlock a pay rise for our people, and means that fair agreements have now been reached with three out of the four unions involved in the recent industrial dispute. Unfortunately, the ASLEF leadership’s decision to call further industrial action means passengers still face disruption between 1-9 December.”

and do that in ways that also help us invest in our public transport networks for the long term.

“What you see in other big cities around the world is more people take public transport and

the network is serving its purpose in the regional economy: large cities can use their space more efficiently and a greater number of workers can reach the city-centre to access opportunities there.”

POLICY MEASURES Develop the density of commercial property in city centres to increase the concentration of jobs in existing commercial locations.

Improve residential density and the use of Local Development Orders to create new mid-rise developments near public transport stops.

Bring responsibilities for running a city’s public transport services together under one body similar to Transport for London.

Where existing commercial partnerships are not working, consider using new bus franchising powers created by recent legislation to improve the integration of services, including integrated ticketing and daily fare caps.

Provide cities with transport-related revenue-raising powers such as congestion charging or workplace parking levies that provide cross-subsidies to fund investment in transport networks.

1 December 2023 | 07

30/11/2023 16:42

NEWS ROUND-UP

Bad ergonomics ‘could be costing £10m a year’ Engineering firm teams up with RMT for survey of workers VEHICLE DESIGN

A new survey from RMT union has added weight to the argument that improved bus cab design could have a significant positive impact on driver working conditions - and could bring savings for bus operators too.

The link between long hours behind the wheel of a bus and increased risk of musculoskeletal pain is already well-established by research. Prolonged postural stresses and vibrations from the vehicle lead to back pain, neck pain and shoulder pain for professional drivers.

Conducted in partnership with Pailton Engineering, RMT’s survey of nearly 400 bus driver members is not a scientific survey. It is, however, a large sample size that provides up to date information on working conditions. And while most of the

debate around working conditions and staff retention has focused on pay, the data from RMT suggests that ergonomics matters too.

Over 78% of respondents claimed their occupation caused them musculoskeletal complaints such as back pain, shoulder pain or neck pain. An even higher number (94%) felt their working conditions could be improved or made more comfortable through the introduction of more adjustable seating, steering columns or driver dashboards. A similar percentage (95%) believed the driver cabin could be designed in a more ergonomic way to reduce the risk of discomfort and pain.

The survey also revealed that many drivers feel they are getting unequal treatment when compared to their peers in other

professions. When asked if they felt they receive the same treatment as office workers when it comes to workplace adjustments for comfort and ergonomics, only 5% answered yes. Yet when asked if they felt bus drivers ought to get the same consideration as office workers in this area, 97% of respondents said yes.

Almost a quarter (23%) of the drivers said they had had time off work in the past year due to work-related back pain, neck pain or shoulder pain.

“The implications of this fact for bus operators and manufacturers are potentially profound,” observed Pailton Engineering. “If nearly a quarter of the profession are regularly out of action due to musculoskeletal problems that are caused by

“Investing in improved ergonomics could save bus operators millions of pounds”Pailton Engineering

poor working conditions and inadequate cabin design, then investing in improved ergonomics could save bus operators millions of pounds, as well as making a strategic contribution to the driver shortage problem.”

Pailton Engineering estimates that the cost to the bus industry in England alone could be more than £10m on the basis of 23% of the 95,000 people employed by England’s bus operators each being off work for five working days with average hourly pay of £13.20.

Pailton Engineering concluded: “Spending more on buses with better-designed cabins is therefore something that is not only the right thing to do for drivers but will certainly save operators millions of pounds too ... As an office worker, I can expect adjustments to my workplace to reduce the risk of pain and discomfort, so why should our bus drivers be treated any differently?”

Pailton Engineering has developed an electric steering column to offer improved ergonomics for drivers, which it demonstrated at the Busworld Europe exhibition in Brussels last October.

FIRST ORDER FOR ENVIRO1O0 EV

GO NORTH EAST PAY PROPOSAL

ELECTRIC BUSES

INDUSTRIAL RELATIONS

Stagecoach has ordered 20 new Enviro100EV buses from Alexander Dennis, becoming the launch customer for the new model. The group placed its order ahead of the type’s launch last month and production is now under way with deliveries expected in the first half of 2024. The purchase has been supported by the Scottish Government’s ScotZEB fund.

A potential resolution to the ongoing indefinite strike affecting Go North East has emerged with the announcement of a pay deal.

The proposal, offering an 11.2% pay increase, which has been endorsed by trade union Unite, is set to undergo a ballot, although strike action continues. Union members picketed the UK Bus Awards this week to highlight the dispute.

Stagecoach confirmed as launch customer

08 | 1 December 2023 PT302p08-09.indd 8

Deal reached that offers workers an 11.2% increase

Stagecoach is the Enviro100EV launch customer

www.passengertransport.co.uk

30/11/2023 16:43

Summit probes options for open access services Event seeks to unlock open access benefits for rail passengers OPEN ACCESS

Key figures from the rail industry gathered in London this week for an open access summit hosted by Rail Partners. It aimed to explore the potential of open access rail operations and how more open access operators can be encouraged by eliminating barriers to market entry.

The event brought together rail minister Huw Merriman, a longtime advocate of open access rail services, representatives from the Department for Transport and the Treasury, Network Rail, the Office of Rail and Road, private sector open access operators, ROSCOs, and retailers. It is the first time in several years the most senior

ORR SUPERVISES RAIL OMBUDSMAN Move aligns with 2021 Plan for Rail commitment REGULATION

The Office of Rail and Road (ORR) has commenced its sponsorship of the Rail Ombudsman, aligning with a commitment outlined in the 2021 Plan for Rail. Under this sponsorship, the ORR will assume responsibility for overseeing the Ombudsman’s delivery of an independent and impartial service.

Functioning as the final recourse for dissatisfied passengers unable to reach an agreement with the relevant operator or the applicable passenger watchdog - Transport Focus or London Travelwatch for services within Greater London - the www.passengertransport.co.uk

PT302p08-09.indd 9

stakeholders in rail have gathered to look at the opportunities and challenges associated with open access services.

Rail Partners said that current open access operations in the UK are limited to the East Coast Main Line and this leaves significant room for further expansion for new open access services.

“Removing barriers such as long approval processes and high entry costs is one way to encourage operators to look at where there is a commercial case for new services delivering more choice and services for passengers,”

“The system is not set up to... attract new entrants” Andy Bagnall

Rail Ombudsman plays a pivotal role in addressing passenger grievances.

The ORR has implemented updates to enhance the Ombudsman’s operations, with a focus on improving accessibility. These changes encompass the appointment of a non-executive director with expertise in disability matters, training for Ombudsman staff on accessibility considerations, and the introduction of new communication channels for passengers to connect with the Ombudsman. Additionally, a series of upgrades to processes and systems aim to streamline the service and make it more user-friendly.

Since its inception in 2018, the Rail Ombudsman has handled over 15,000 cases, exemplifying its pivotal role in addressing passenger concerns within the rail industry.

added the lobby group.

Rail Partners, along with its members, called on regulators, operators, and Network Rail to implement measures that foster more open access. This could involve exploring post-Covid demand for rail services to identify new opportunities for open access, providing additional support through the applications process to expedite market entry.

It has also called for the regulatory framework to be updated so that economic, environmental and social benefits of a new service are considered alongside the basic business case.

“Currently, the system is not set up to fully unlock that potential, or attract new entrants into the market,” commented Rail Partners chief executive Andy Bagnall.

EMR WARNS ON FAKE ACCOUNTS

Operator reports 17 fake X accounts in the last month SOCIAL MEDIA

East Midlands Railway (EMR) is urging its customers to be vigilant for fake social media accounts pretending to be the train operator.

In the past month alone, EMR claims it has identified and reported 17 fake X, formerly known as Twitter, accounts which are using EMR’s profile name, bio, profile image and cover photo to trick users and potentially defraud them.

“They are often quite convincing, and it’s easy to see how some of our customers could be fooled,” said EMR customer services director Dave Meredith.

Four services will stop at Peterborough

GRAND CENTRAL ADDS NEW STOPS Open access operator to serve Peterborough OPEN ACCESS

Open access operator Grand Central will expand early next year with additional stops at Peterborough station following approval of the proposals by the Office of Rail and Road (ORR).

Approval by the ORR will enable two existing daily Grand Central services between London and West Yorkshire and London and Sunderland to call at Peterborough in each direction between Monday and Saturday.

Grand Central services currently operate non-stop between London and York before continuing to their destinations.

The rail regulator said it supported new access services where they deliver competition for the benefit of passengers and can fit alongside existing services without unduly impacting performance on the network.

“Open access services promote competition on the rail network and give passengers more choice about how they travel,” said Stephanie Tobyn, the ORR’s director of strategy, policy and reform. “With passenger numbers still not quite recovered following the pandemic, it’s important that the network provides options for all as the industry looks to increase passenger journeys.”

1 December 2023 | 09

30/11/2023 16:43

NEWS ROUND-UP

No data on progress to 2025 modal shift target Wales has target for 35% of trips to be by sustainable transport STRATEGY

The Welsh Government has no data on whether it is on course to meet its target of 35% of trips being by sustainable transport in 2025, although it is half way through the four years it allocated itself to reach that goal.

The Net Zero Wales Carbon Budget 2, published in October 2021, said the government’s aim was to increase the proportion of trips by public transport and active travel to 35% by 2025 and 39% by 2030, alongside a 10% reduction in car miles per person by 2030. The Senedd Research Service said the government would monitor delivery of Net Zero Wales in various ways,

TfW BOSS WANTS DELAY REPAY CONVERSATION

Passengers compensated for 15-minute delays COMPENSATION

TfW chief executive James Price has queried the appropriateness of Delay Repay since TfW Rail moved from the private sector to the public sector.

He was responding at a Senedd committee session to a question from Delyth Jewell MS, who said she understood that between October 2022 and September 2023, TfW had paid £1,848,488 in compensation for delays. She asked Price to explain what effect the Delay Repay scheme had on TfW’s budget.

10 | 1 December 2023 PT302p10-11.indd 10

including annual indicators tracking progress towards targets.

Asked for the indicators of progress towards the 2025 sustainable transport target, the government said: “No data currently available.”

The response was the same in relation to the 10% reduction in car miles per person by 2030.

It appears unlikely that the proportion of trips made by public transport and active travel in Wales has increased significantly from the 2019 baseline. Transport for Wales has been awarded a £125m increase in its rail funding for this financial year on the basis that rail passengers are only back to pre-Covid-19 numbers, without the growth that was previously forecast by 2023.

Buses account for about 75%

of public transport trips in Wales but the bus network is contracting substantially this year in response to increased costs, reduced passenger numbers and the Welsh Government tapering off its additional funding for the industry’s recovery from the impact of Covid-19 on patronage.

Price replied: “Delay Repay is something that governments of the UK were very keen on, certainly when private sector contractors were running the service, because it was an attempt to try to penalise operators for poor performance.

Typically, a proportion of those figures would come out of profits that otherwise would be taken out of the business.”

He continued: “You could make a reasonably compelling argument well, in fact, a completely compelling argument - that that incentive doesn’t work with us. However,

there’s also something about being fair to the customer as well.

“The alternative view - which is not in conflict with the first one is, obviously, if people aren’t getting what they paid for, they ought to get a proportion of that back. Most of the UK is moving towards some form of manual or automated Delay Repay.

We are at the more, I guess, generous end of that, and 15 minutes is the time that we have.”

TfW passengers can claim under Delay Repay if they arrive at their destination more than 15 minutes late.

Adventure Travel is planning further service reductions

“It’s probably a policy conversation that we should take away ... about what the right balance is”James Price, TfW

Members of the Senedd have been told of people now being unable to reach workplaces, schools or medical facilities because of gaps in the bus network. Further service reductions will be implemented next month, including by Adventure Travel and Stagecoach.

The Welsh Government expects Wales-wide bus franchising to revive the bus sector but there is still no sign of the necessary legislation, six years after the UK Government passed similar legislation for England. Asked when the bus reform legislation would be introduced to the Senedd, the Welsh Government said on November 16: “The First Minister announced in his legislative statement in July that we intend to introduce the Bill during the third year of this Senedd.”

The third year of this Senedd ends in May 2024. Some in the bus industry believe the legislation could appear in the first two months of 2024.

“It’s probably a policy conversation that we should take away and have with the Welsh Government about what the right balance is,” added Price. “Of course, as we run better services, that figure will go down anyway, and then maybe what we end up with is basically a passenger charter that includes that [Delay Repay scheme], and the fact that we have that drives more people to use the service, drives modal shift, drives down subsidy and, in the round, is the right thing to do. We should consider that again.”

The annual report of DfT OLR Holdings recently revealed that Delay Repay outgoings at Northern Trains Ltd, LNER and Southeastern Trains Ltd had increased from 1.2% of total revenue to 2.0% in 2022/23 (PT301). www.passengertransport.co.uk

30/11/2023 16:43

TfW staff could drive rail replacement buses Franchised bus operators would provide vehicles INTEGRATION

Transport for Wales has revealed that it is exploring the possibility of some station staff being trained to drive rail replacement buses, once bus franchising is embedded across Wales.

Driver shortages in the bus and coach sector in recent years have made it harder for British train operators to find replacement transport at short notice, and rural stations can be far from the nearest available vehicle and driver.

In August, passengers were left for two and a half hours at the remote Llanwrtyd station after a points failure on the Heart of Wales line.

TfW chief executive James Price told a Senedd committee that TfW was having positive conversations with unions about various proposals, including station staff driving replacement buses. Currently, TfW could be reliant on a bus operator two hours away from a rural rail station where a problem arose, he explained.

“One of the options we’re looking at is that some of our station staff could hold public service vehicle licences, and would be able to access a local bus that would be maintained and insured for us by one of our franchise provider systems.” He said those types of things were done in other countries but not the UK currently.

He also said that in planning future bus networks, in collaboration with local government, TfW aimed to avoid rail and bus using public funding to compete with each other along the www.passengertransport.co.uk

PT302p10-11.indd 11

same routes, but instead to “work out what is the most appropriate route for a particular journey type, and then use the money that is saved to punch further into the local community to allow more people to use services”.

One of the MSs on the committee asked how this would work in a hypothetical valley which had a railway along its spine but was increasingly poorly served in its northern part by buses. He wanted to know if the focus “would be getting people better served by bus to those communities, and getting them to the nodal point of rail, as opposed to duplicating services with bus up and down the valley at the same time”.

Price responded: “That is a live example of something that we are looking at now, absolutely.

Obviously, the power to do that properly and fully will only come

with bus franchising.”

Before then, TfW’s ability to work cross-modally will be demonstrated at Cardiff Central, where the long-delayed replacement for the city’s bus station is expected to open in the coming months. “We are going further than somewhere like Transport for London on this,” said Price. “Not only do we want to plan in a joined-up way, we want to deliver services in a joined-up way with joined-up teams.

“So the first real example of that will be the Cardiff bus interchange when that opens. It won’t operate, actually, as a separate Cardiff bus interchange. It will operate and be staffed by the same management team and the same staff as Cardiff Central [railway station] next door. So, people will walk between the two. You’ll have the same manager, most of the teams will be interchangeably used, etc.”

“Not only do we want to plan in a joinedup way, we want to deliver services in a joined-up way with joined-up teams” James Price, TfW

NO DECISION ON ENGLISH BUS RETROFIT FUNDING Programme has been on hold for eight months CLEAN AIR

The UK Government has still not made a decision on whether to reinstate funding for bus retrofitting in England, eight months after pausing the funding due to concerns that the technology may not deliver the expected reductions (PT294).

The retrofitting programme was intended to reduce NOx pollution from buses without the expense and high carbon footprint of replacing vehicles prematurely. Issues were first identified in Scotland’s equivalent programme.

Transport Scotland has continued with its Bus Emissions Abatement Retrofit Programme, making £3.26m available this financial year, but the DfT paused its programme in April while further investigation of the technology’s effectiveness was carried out. The pause resulted in further delay to the introduction of Greater Manchester’s Clean Air Zone.

Last week, the DfT responded to a request from Passenger Transport for information about the decision it had made on the future of bus retrofitting or, if no decision had been made, why the process was taking so long.

The DfT answered: “Updates will be provided in due course.”

IN BRIEF

TfW rail replacement coach in Rhyl

NEW MINISTER IN ENGLAND Guy Opperman MP has been announced as the new buses minister for England following prime minister Rishi Sunak’s recent reshuffle. He succeeds Richard Holden MP who has moved to the position of Conservative Party chair.

1 December 2023 | 11

30/11/2023 16:43

NET ZERO

FirstGroup and Hitachi agree battery venture Strategic partnership will jointly purchase 1,000 batteries ELECTRIC BUSES

FirstGroup has agreed a new partnership with Hitachi ZeroCarbon to provide batteries for its expanding electric bus fleet. The partnership will see up to £10m cash investment each from FirstGroup and Hitachi to support the acquisition of 1,000 batteries through a newly formed 50:50 joint venture, NextGen AssetCo Limited.

In addition, Hitachi ZeroCarbon will provide its Battery Charging and Management Services (BCMS) for 1,000 buses powered by the new batteries as well as a further commitment of 500 vehicles beyond FY 2026.

This will allow FirstGroup to optimise bus battery efficiency and cost, likely resulting in

materially lower future capital deployment by extending the batteries’ useful bus life beyond their initial eight-year OEM warranty periods, at zero lease cost. Through smart charging, effective battery management and dynamic energy management, First Bus is also likely to see improved energy utilisation.

The new venture will build on the two companies’ existing strong relationship, which has already seen Hitachi Europe selected as the prime strategic partner for First Bus’s decarbonisation programme at its

“This is a major strategic partnership for the group”

Graham Sutherland

buses as a main form of transport.

LABOUR CHAIR Zenobe’s latest partnership with SEES EV PROGRESS Oxford Bus Company, a subsidiary

Anneliese Dodds visits Oxford’s Cowley Road depot ELECTRIC BUSES

Zenobe, specialists in EV fleet and battery storage solutions, highlighted the EV fleet policy developments required to support the electrification of fleets and public transport, during a visit by Oxford Labour Party chair Anneliese Dodds to Oxford Bus Company’s Cowley Depot.

Recommendations include striving for more continuous and consistent funding models, clarity in the route forward for bus electrification targets and measures that will encourage more passengers to use 12 | 1 December 2023 PT302p12-13.indd 12

of GoAhead Group, is one step to supporting the switch to electric, installing 104 bus charging points at its Cowley Depot as part of its recent ZEBRA-funded rollout of the same number of electric buses later this year. The project aims to clean up Oxford’s air quality and provide residents with cost-effective, reliable transportation without imposing constraints on residents.

The project is one example of Zenobe’s work to support the transition to greener transport networks, with its state-of-the-art charging hubs to each deliver 150kW of power.

flagship Caledonia bus depot in Glasgow during the UN’s COP26 summit.

FirstGroup CEO Graham Sutherland said: “The pioneering alliance with Hitachi is a major strategic partnership for the group as we progress towards our ambitious 2035 decarbonisation target for our bus fleet. It will allow us to continue the electrification of our fleet and depots with increased efficiency and greater visibility of our financial commitment, and unlike other possible arrangements, we will retain much of the residual value in the batteries as they are taken off our buses.

“Looking ahead, we are also excited about the possibilities for future value creation as Hitachi ZeroCarbon delivers market leading decarbonisation solutions to transport operators worldwide, leveraging our joint experience.”

Anneliese Dodds, who is also MP for Oxford East, commented on her recent visit to the Go-Ahead Group’s Cowley Depot in Oxford: “I am delighted to be here with Zenobe, Oxford Bus and Oxford City Council to celebrate the electrification of Oxford’s landmark

Anneliese Dodds (left)

SUSTAINABLE RAIL BLUEPRINT LAUNCHED A new framework to support the rail industry STRATEGY

The Rail Safety and Standards Board today launched the Sustainable Rail Blueprint, a new framework to support the rail industry in Great Britain make efficient progress on environmental and social sustainability challenges.

The Department for Transport identified the need for a cross industry strategy in 2020, and funded development of the Blueprint- co-created with industry stakeholders and delivered by RSSB’s sustainability experts.

The Sustainable Rail Blueprint is the rail industry’s consensus view of how rail can deliver even more across environmental and social issues. As the industry adapts to changes in passenger and freight demands and changes in rail usage post pandemic, the blueprint will help inform debate and decisions on options, affordability, and practicality.

new fleet of buses. Labour is committed to decarbonising public transport, and it is solutions like these that will make this a reality.”

Luke Marion, managing director of Oxford Bus Company, added: “It was great to welcome Anneliese to our depot and to show her the rapid progress we are making installing the charging infrastructure as part of our fast-moving plans to decarbonise our city fleet.

“Anneliese is a great advocate of bus travel and a supporter of our journey to an electric future, so we valued the opportunity to further educate her on our strategy to improve air quality and roll out netzero technology with key partners including Zenobe.” www.passengertransport.co.uk

30/11/2023 14:34

PT302p12-13.indd 13

30/11/2023 14:34

COMMENT

NORMAN BAKER

Transport must wait as election looms With the government focussed on defying the odds and clinging to power, and Labour being cautious, transport is in the long grass

And so the long run into the general election has begun. It is the period of a Parliament when only initiatives that are calculated to shift the electoral dial are taken forward, and necessary, often routine, often sensible ideas are played down or even put on the back burner until after the election has taken place.

The only thing that matters for the governing party is to try to secure re-election, and everything else has to be subservient to that.

That normal pre-election pattern is particularly acute this time around with all the polls pointing to a heavy Conservative loss.

So, what we are now seeing from the government across the patch is a series of disconnected almost random policy lurches in the hope that something, anything, will move the dial and open up some blue water with Labour. Flights to Rwanda, a 2p cut in National Insurance rates, longer prison sentences for this or that, new laws to clamp down on protest, a ban on smoking for young people. There is no intellectual coherence to this - it is all a bit desperate.

How does this all play out in transport?

Well, there was the cancelling of Phase 2 of HS2, pleasing many Tory MPs on the route and some of our less progressive newspaper titles, whose endorsement the government seeks.

The BCR for the remaining bleeding stump from Birmingham to Old Oak Common is now thought be negative at 0.8.

The HS2 decision was taken behind closed doors by a small cabal of zealots in No 10, 14 | 1 December 2023 PT302p14-15.indd 14

without involvement from the Department for Transport and without consulting Network Rail, and it shows. It is clear that a whole series of knock-on effects were never considered.

For instance, we are told HS2 trains will join the existing West Coast Main Line at Lichfield, north of Birmingham. Except that the portion of the line from Lichfield to Crewe is already essentially full, so HS2 trains can only be accommodated if paths are removed from freight trains or from passenger trains coming up from Milton Keynes and Rugby.

Then we had the prime minister’s appalling Plan for Drivers, weaponising the non-existent “war on the motorist”, which again was created in No 10 without DfT involvement. The reaction to this was a letter in The Times, signed by all five major bus companies, decrying the document and its adverse effect on buses. DfT ministers, doubtless under the cosh from No 10, are at pains to deny that the prime minister’s move is anti-bus, but the fact remains that road space is finite and if cars are to have more access to bus lanes, then that will affect bus services.

That is why the government’s own National Bus Strategy states: “The Government expects plans for bus lanes on any roads where there is a frequent bus service, congestion, and

“The HS2 decision was taken behind closed doors by a small cabal of zealots”

physical space to install them. Bus lanes should be full-time and as continuous as possible.”

Can someone please tell the prime minister what his government’s own policy is?

Meanwhile, relegated to the back burner is the short Bill to create Great British Railways, a concept that has wide cross-party support, strong industry backing, and even Treasury endorsement. We are instead, three and a half years on from the Williams-Shapps plan, to have yet more consultation. About what?

We have seen over the last dozen years a freeze on fuel duty while rail and bus fares have risen inexorably above inflation. I will give odds of 100/1 against the chancellor moving away from this stance in his March budget, notwithstanding the gaping hole in the government’s finances. Nor will we see any moves towards pay-as-you-drive which Treasury officials know only too well will have to come at some point, as electric vehicles replace duty-paying petrol and diesel ones, and the sooner the better from their point of view.

Any moves on ticket offices have been postponed, and the necessary reform of fares and ticketing is progressing at a snail’s pace.

The long grass is getting pretty crowded.

On the plus side, the government is unlikely to ratchet up rail fares this year by the July inflation figure - the usual determinant though there will still probably be another hefty rise, perhaps 5%. And it has to its credit kept the £2 bus fare in place, which is beginning to make a real and positive difference. The price protection is only guaranteed until the end of next year, so the expectation is that a long term decision on this is being pushed into the next Parliament. More long grass.

The Labour response to these Tory tactics is to avoid taking the bait and to say as little as possible of substance. We know, for example, that Labour has committed to “renationalise the railways”, but what does that actually mean?

The suggestion has been that they will “take back control” of each contract as it expires, presumably loading up the Operator of Last Resort until the entire network rests with them, in some sort of recreated British Rail. This would expressly require the creation of such a body or the acceptance that micro-management from DfT officials will go into overdrive. Meanwhile, why would the train operating companies bother doing anything to improve services if they know www.passengertransport.co.uk

30/11/2023 14:42

Rory Arnold / No 10 Downing Street

“All in all, we are likely to see nothing new from the Conservatives on transport”

The prime minister Rishi Sunak hosting a Cabinet meeting this week

they are about to be defenestrated?

A better answer for Labour would be to apply the London Buses model, where there is central control of timetables, fares, train liveries etc, but contracts are let to private companies to run the services. This is of course essentially what we have now on trains, without the uniform colour scheme.

Labour has said it does not want to touch the ROSCOs, which is odd as they are the overtly private sector bit of the railways. Network Rail and the Office of Rail & Road are already in the public sector. So I am not sure overall that very much is going to change, bar a bit of rebranding and rebadging.

What we do badly need is a traction strategy, to ensure some coherence between the extent of electrified railway and the appropriate quantity of electrified vehicles. At the moment ROSCOs are having to work in the dark, and to guess what will happen next.

One consequence is that at least one ROSCO is actually cutting up electric trains for which no home on the network can be found. Other electric trains languish in the sidings. A second consequence coming down the track is the extended use of what will in due course become clapped out diesel trains, for no new diesel stock is being built. A third www.passengertransport.co.uk

PT302p14-15.indd 15

is an unnecessary increase in the cost of new rolling stock as manufacturers hedge their bets and cover all bases. The new CAF trains for the East Coast Main Line are tri-mode - electric, diesel, battery - extra weight and extra cost.

I would like to think that some thought is being given to these issues behind the scenes in the Tory, Labour and Lib Dem parties, but I am not convinced it is. Labour’s new shadow rail minister Stephen Morgan is encouragingly enthusiastic and eagerly soaking up knowledge, so let us hope that Labour, relatively mute now, will burst forward with some detailed and well honed plans the day after it wins the election, if it does.

The government has announced lots of new transport investments, to be paid for by the re-directed £36bn from the cancelled Phase 2 of HS2. But if the expectation is that those redirected funds will transfer into votes, I suspect they may be disappointed.

For a start, that figure is an historic one from, I think, 2021, since when inflation has ravaged its value. Second, the funds are spread so widely across the country and way beyond the HS2 corridor so as to lessen their local impact. Third, nothing which is promised will be delivered before the election, not even the legendary spades in the ground. Fourth, there

is a cynicism that what has been promised will ever be delivered at all, given the predilection for U-turns and cancelling of schemes.

All in all, therefore, we are likely to see nothing new from the Conservatives on transport, unless some focus group suggests some niche policy of gaining votes.

We are likely to see nothing much in the way of commitments from Labour as the party tries to avoid saying anything that might give the Tories, and their newspaper friends, any ammunition. We will see rather more from the Lib Dems but brutally only because it won’t register very high on the Richter scale.

So the challenge for the transport industry between now and the election is to be clear what it wants, to speak with one voice so far as possible, and to double down on efforts to influence the parties behind the scenes so that we can all set off at a fast pace in the right direction as soon as the election is out of the way.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR Norman Baker served as transport minister from May 2010 until October 2013. He was Lib Dem MP for Lewes between 1997 and 2015.

1 December 2023 | 15

30/11/2023 14:42

COMMENT

ALEX WARNER

A mood-lifting trip should start with us

Public transport isn’t just about essential journeys. It can also be about fun days out, but this opportunity is too often overlooked Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. I guess that’s how ‘Er Indoors must have fallen for me all those years ago, but it’s also a cliché that sums up one person’s perception of what constitutes a good day out by public transport.

My lovely trip on Cat 9 from Warrington to Northwich is another person’s mundane experience, but I find more and more folk are realising that the way to get through these dark months is a good journey out the house on a bus or train to an interesting destination.

As I’ve often said before, a trip out on public transport is an excellent antidote to feelings of depression or just generally when there’s a need to get away and reflect on things, gazing out of the window, with the mind uncluttered.

Recently, I’ve ditched taking my laptop on my travels, partly through fear of breaking the screen yet again, but also because I find that I not only enjoy looking out the window more, I also find writing down notes in a notepad, with ideas or concepts or sometimes articles, and reflecting rather than dashing straight for the keyboard, is really helpful.

Anyway, where’s all this going? Well, three concerns for me. The first is that I don’t think the transport industry does enough to extol the virtues of a trip out from a well-being perspective. Secondly, the industry seems to find it an eternal struggle to engage with destinations and attractions in a joined up way, to collectively provide inspiration to get out the house. And, lastly, the journey itself often lacks innovation and colour.

16 | 1 December 2023 PT302p16-17.indd 16

It’s as though operators are trying to emulate a doctor’s waiting room or church hall, by belligerently trying to do as little as possible to brighten up the experience. Too many are providing gloomy, moribund buses and trains for downbeat customers going out to do miserable things, like work, school, medical appointments or a trip to the cemetery.

The transport industry is very quick, in a selfpromoting way, to spout to each other about the wellbeing of its own workers, dreaming up stuff like ‘Mental Health Mondays’, ‘Well-being Wednesdays’, online yoga classes, counselling and being kind to colleagues, but, apart from the odd poster encouraging customers to talk to each other, it actually doesn’t give two hoots about the people that pay these folk’s wages.

I can’t recall the last time I saw an advertising campaign encouraging folk to travel by public transport as a cure for loneliness or to broaden horizons, get fresh air, blow away the cobwebs, break away from staring at four walls or stuck day and night on Teams Calls in one room. It’s as though it is incapable or unwilling to research and grapple with psychological complexity and produce a campaign that might be multifaceted, reflective and deeply nuanced.

As a wise old sage reminded me only last

“It’s as though operators are trying to emulate a doctor’s waiting room”

week, if you wake up one morning and say ‘where shall we have a great day out today?’, your first inclination isn’t to check a transport company’s website for inspiration. Well, that’s largely correct, but it is, to an extent, because, with a few exceptions, you’ll struggle to find much inspiration on an operator’s website.

It’s unsurprising, as the responsibility of getting people to visit somewhere, surely rests with the destination provider or tourist authority - it’s their number one focus, after all, to get people to visit! However, it doesn’t, of course, have to be this way. If we created the world again, with that famous blank sheet of paper, might we not be totally in-sync with those purveyors of days out experiences and holidays? Public transport is reliant on them, in much the same way, as they are on us. If people have no reason to travel, then they won’t unless of course, the reason is the fun journey itself and the view from the window, of which there are many routes where that is the case.

It doesn’t feel right that currently the websites of most attractions and destinations, half-heartedly at most reference ‘how to find us’ and mention lazily the bus or train, without giving this reference more than a sentence.

If you’re lucky, there will be a link to the bus company website, but it almost feels they are embarrassed to mention public transport ‘getting here by car’ always features first. There’s never a compelling narrative about how easy it is to get to the destination by bus or train and the destination providers never post about the ease of using public transport on their own social media. But, then again, how often do transport operators promote the attractions?

Even those who do deign it upon themselves to have a ‘Days Out’ page on their websites, feature a painfully minimalist list of events and places to visit, which is always written in the most uninspiring language. At best, they might retweet a post from an attraction.

Transport operators and places that folk might want to travel have a habit of staring suspiciously at each other, like newly acquainted cats - tails up, all defensive. Yet they fail to realise that by actually collaborating, they can be of huge mutual assistance. There are admittedly, some organisations who are crying out for a solution, but they’ll struggle, in the complicated world of public transport, to fathom out who to contact or what solution might work for both parties. www.passengertransport.co.uk

30/11/2023 14:54

“The National Trust is a great example of an organisation really up for collaboration” The National Trust is a great example of an organisation really up for collaboration with transport providers on a nationwide scale.

I had a great call with them a fortnight ago, hearing the challenges they have around too many cars polluting the lovely country access roads and green fields on their sites being turned into overflow car parks or their sites not being able to properly reach out to the full demographic spectrum because unless you have a car and are willing and can afford to travel. The links from the nearest conurbations by bus and rail are poor or non-existent.

At Great Scenic Journeys, which I founded, we’ve created a team of transport ambassadors to help, on behalf of operators, go into tourist attractions and build relationships and broker reciprocal marketing deals and customer benefits. We’re also developing a QR code for display on buses and trains that regales customers with details of the scenery on the journey and fascinating facts about the route, as well as showcases attractions, supported by dynamic timetabling illustrating places to visit along the route map. The QR code will also link to a real time customer satisfaction survey, the results of which we’ll collate and feed back to the transport provider. We’re also working with a revolutionary company called You. Smart. Thing. which is a tech business that provides digital travel plans for events and attractions that helps them showcase public transport operators as the most carbonefficient means of reaching their attraction.

The QR code initiative was dreamt up first and foremost as a way of creating a bit of colour and interest to go with the view from the window, whilst also bring to life some of the hidden gem destinations on a route that might not be necessarily considered as stunningly scenic. We felt there was a need because it’s all very well going on a bus and grumbling that there’s no internal branding or on-board experience, but many companies can’t afford this, whereas what we’re providing is a subtle way of creating a bit of interest and ambience in the absence of anything major from a brand perspective. We’re determined to put our codes in those often empty A4 frames behind the driver and on windows and we’ll put a version in attractions to promote the local bus route.

Of course, one person’s fascinating journey is another’s bore-fest. We did some vox pop www.passengertransport.co.uk

PT302p16-17.indd 17

surveys in late summer of groups of customers at various places across the country on routes that went through picturesque villages and to market towns. These are routes that the folk we spoke to said were ‘pleasant’ and ‘enjoyable’ but not necessarily something they’d tell their friends as being the reason to make a trip out.

However, 38% of those we consulted remarked that the collection of a pretty view from the window and some interesting places to visit at the end of the journey were the reasons they made the trip. The ‘interest’ was what might be defined as ‘simple pleasures’ - a pint in Wetherspoons whilst reading a newspaper, a visit to a craft fair, museum or a browse in some independent shops. The trips were also those that wouldn’t be characterised as ‘standout highlights’ of the year or even month but were viewed as ‘part and parcel of the pleasures of everyday life’ - again, ‘simple pleasures’.

Walking was also cited as an activity that was seen as compatible with a bus journey. I’m not just talking the big, stellar walks that lead to hikers aplenty getting on the Exmoor Coaster or Stagecoach Bluebird bus to Braemar, but the manageable one hour or less nature trails, off the Peak District or Bronte countryside from Skipton that give a glimpse of the wild terrain beyond for the less adventurous.

There’s also an increasing interest, post Covid, for even shorter walks - ‘strolls’ that might consist of just a mile or two circular trip round the village or market town, with the prize of a pint at the local pub or cream tea at the end.

That’s why my favourite app by some distance is from the fabulous, leading walk provider Go Jauntly, which has provided a curated walk for almost all the walks on our Great Scenic Journeys collection. I’ll be chatting with the Go Jauntly founder in a future issue as I genuinely believe that by better combining public transport with walking we will unleash an entirely new stream of demand for the sector. This kind of stuff is life-changing for people and the industry.

What does all of the above tell us? Well it reveals, albeit only as a snapshot, the invaluable role that a bus journey, in particular, has on ‘facilitating lives’ in terms of the important pleasures that actually make getting up in the morning palatable and worthwhile.

Our snapshot surveys also illustrate the fairly large number of those who are partaking in the journey because it is a mix of ‘pleasurable’ and

also goes to an interesting destination. Those we spoke to would not necessarily have made the trip if only one of the two factors existed e.g. if the trip is enjoyable but the destination isn’t worthwhile, then they wouldn’t travel, but by the same token, if the journey wasn’t much fun, then, so too, they would stay at home, even if the end attraction was decent. It goes to show just how important a mix of ‘good journey and good destination’ is and the role in making sure both are promoted and in the case of the former, the customer experience is up to scratch.

Some transport operators give a glimpse of getting it and there are examples of Christmas Markets being well promoted across the country. If the promotion of ‘reasons to travel’ could be for life and not just for Christmas, then we’d be in a much stronger position.

The potential is stupendously exciting if we change the mindset and as an industry start trying to be joined at the hip with attractions and destinations - not just the big and obvious ones, but those hidden gems - and realise we have a shared opportunity and responsibility in unlocking social mobility.

There are swathes of bus and rail routes that are not just interesting journeys but also serve places where there are wonderful experiences to be enjoyed - the kind of fun that is the perfect therapy and cure for those seasonal blues - whatever time of year. However, a onedimensional approach won’t suffice - it’s not as easy as just contacting an attraction. The challenge is as much psychological and raising awareness of the mental health and physical benefits of a day out by public transport.

So, next time you are telling a colleague about ‘Well-Being Wednesday’, please don’t be discouraged, but in the first instance, maybe give some advice to your current and future customers first?

ABOUT THE AUTHOR Alex Warner has over 30 years’ experience in the transport sector, having held senior roles on a multi-modal basis across the sector. He is co-founder of recruitment business Lost Group and transport consultancy AJW Experience Group (which includes Great Scenic Journeys).

He is also chair of West Midlands Grand Rail Collaboration and chair of Surrey FA.

1 December 2023 | 17

30/11/2023 14:54

COMMENT

Transport targets going adrift

NICK RICHARDSON

Hit or miss: are targets achieveable?

Targets are used to measure transport performance but some have inherent weaknesses that can compromise their effectiveness Targets appear in most aspects of modern life and certainly in government where they have become something of an obsession.

Unfortunately, they have also become something to discard or redefine when convenient, the recent stepping-back of the UK’s environmental targets being a roundly criticised example. There seems to be little point in setting and agreeing targets if the goalposts shift subsequently or, to use the prime minister’s paradoxical expression, ‘the facts have changed’.

Are targets useful?

As performance indicators, targets are set up to measure and incentivise but with mixed results. If met, the next round is likely to be more challenging; if not met, they are likely to set off a trail of analysis to uncover the reasons. However, the common political aspect also means that targets can be quietly forgotten or simply amended to suit the mood of the day. Like budgeting, there is an element of the unknown in setting targets with the result that the circumstances in which they are determined may change by the time they are assessed and in many cases fail to identify the reasons why they have or have not been met. Essentially, targets are useful when they are set within range of being achieved but inconvenient when they are not.

Politicians love targets simply because they can make up some numbers to get excited about if they are likely to be met 18 | 1 December 2023 PT302p18-19.indd 18

but unambitious. The whole purpose of performance indicators has been requisitioned by some as a whipping post that demonstrates failure or a rallying point for some often illdefined policy. For either option, the outcome is rarely satisfactory, not least if the reasoning behind certain targets is unclear. In some cases, simplifying the links between cause and effect is far more complex than some simple targets would have us believe - this is so often the case with transport. It also blights education, healthcare and a myriad of other aspects of life today in which figures are hijacked for political purposes rather than being a true refection of what is going on.

Train operators are contracted to run trains so they should run all of them

The problem is highlighted by climate change and the route to Net Zero. Commitments have been made to certain targets including transport emissions by a particular date, usually on the basis of political hope rather than exact science. In one sense it doesn’t matter which of these is in play because we are so far off reaching them, the positioning of the target becomes ever less relevant.

We are way off achieving anything like the substantial reductions in vehicle emissions that have been promised, and even if a whole raft of appropriate policies had been adopted, we would still be some way away from the intended levels. To date we have some electric cars, vans and buses but they still represent only a very small minority of vehicles and the technology still has some way to go before it really offers a viable and affordable alternative to fossil fuels, and there remain some big questions over deliverability and desirability. Trajectory-plotting shows a range of possibilities that range from hopeless to disappointing but in this instance, there is ever-increasing urgency.

The fact that remarkably little has been achieved to date is symptomatic of world governance that collectively and consistently fails to achieve what most citizens aspire to.

At a national scale, the UK’s efforts have been pretty pathetic and heavily criticised in the face of approaching disaster, although passenger transport is ahead of the pack in many respects. However, electrifying the road vehicle fleet is nowhere near a satisfactory outcome and aviation and maritime march on with only minor excursions into sustainable energy initiatives. Recent experimentation seeks to address these concerns with innovations such as the addition of sails to large commercial ships, albeit rather more modern in design than the sails of past eras but perhaps we really haven’t progressed far at all in technology. Targets can rely on as-yet undeveloped technology such as more fuelefficient and emission-free means of powering vehicles but this is more vain hope than realistic proposition. Relying on the unproven has never been a brilliant idea.

We are told that some high profile projects are completed on time and on budget. This sounds good until it becomes apparent that the budget has been huge and the programme www.passengertransport.co.uk

30/11/2023 14:46

IN ASSOCIATION WITH: www.ciltuk.org.uk Tel: 01536 740100 @ciltuk

poorly defined. That’s not to undermine the success of some projects in a culture in which the expectation is of failure to control budgets or programme. We have widespread adoption of the optimism bias concept and can play to the effects of exogenous determinants such as world events to explain why initiatives don’t turn out as planned. But we have consistently failed, in transport at least, to learn from past mistakes and adopt effective evaluation.

To date we have some electric cars, vans and buses but they still represent only a very small minority of vehicles

Reflecting reality For passenger transport, there are lots of figures generated for all aspects of performance, customer experiences and everything else. Data abounds to the extent where it isn’t all usable simply because there is too much of it. Data scientists, a relatively recent phenomenon, will predict big data handling to make better use of all the data available but this should not be at the expense of common sense. Having vast amounts of data is only useful if it is used appropriately.

It is easy to set figures for bus, tram or train use but rather more difficult to achieve them because there are many influences and changes in circumstance. In many cases, simply retaining market share is an achievement rather than a target to achieve more.

I particularly like the posters at rail stations that set out the performance of the relevant train operators. All looks transparent and helpful on the face of it but digging more deeply shows that punctuality i.e. trains turning up on time is not measured everywhere but only at the destination. This allows spurious statistics to be circulated to give the impression that everything is under control when it isn’t. Reading that 90% of trains ran on time when daily experience knows that they don’t rather defeats the object of collecting all the data in the first place. Missing out stations is an indicator of needing to arrive on time, not of customer satisfaction; poor punctuality along the way does not help the passengers. What is even more peculiar is the notion that anything under 100% satisfactory performance is somehow acceptable. Train operators are contracted to run trains so they should run all of them, not just most of them or some of them - anything less than 100% is surely a failure. Similarly, customer satisfaction should be higher, although human nature decides that www.passengertransport.co.uk

PT302p18-19.indd 19

“Data abounds to the extent where it isn’t all usable simply because there is too much of it” some opinions may not carry the same weight as others. If anyone is asked if they want better trains, stations, staff or anything else, they feel compelled to agree.

For buses, punctuality can be really difficult. All sorts of incidents can get in the way, usually beyond the remit of bus operators. Our response is usually to berate the service providers and even fine them when a more reasonable outcome would be more detailed analysis to support changes that improve the situation. Unless routes have a high degree of segregation from other vehicles and punctuality can be controlled, then actually achieving any meaningful target is likely to be impossible. Perhaps bus punctuality should be measured against

traffic speeds and the incidence of road works. - identifying a causal link is surely more informative than numbers alone.

It is accepted that all targets should be SMART i.e. Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant and Time-bound. They should also be intelligible and realistic. Then we have the debate about what is a goal as opposed to a target and for that matter why aims are different to objectives and why we should be outcome-driven rather than output-led.

Whatever is being considered, sensible targets are helpful if they relate to what is supposed to be achieved, not figures for the sake of figures.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR Nick Richardson is technical director at transport consultancy WSP and chair of CILT’s Bus and Coach Policy Group and is a former chair of the Transport Planning Society.

In addition, he has held a PCV licence for over 36 years.

1 December 2023 | 19

30/11/2023 14:46

COMMENT

GREAT MINSTER GRUMBLES

Where’s the will to progress this Bill?

Our Whitehall insider imagines what’s going on inside the minds of the mandarins at Great Minster House, home of the DfT

It was clear from reading the last edition of Passenger Transport that it’s not just me that was baffled by the government’s decision to only proceed with a draft Rail Reform Bill, rather than actually proceed with a formal Bill. Most of the rail industry seems pretty bemused! Inevitably, our secretary of state, Mark Harper, was questioned about this when he appeared before the Transport Select Committee on November 15.

His explanation was equally baffling, and not a little disingenuous. He told the committee that “the Bill is in good shape and we know what we want to do with it”. Which begs the question: why do you need to consult on it through a pre-legislative scrutiny process?

When asked what else the government was hoping to achieve by further scrutiny the secretary of state said that “there is still quite a difference of opinion about what people are trying to achieve”.

This makes no sense at all. If, as the secretary of state said, the government knows what it wants to do with the Bill, why does it matter if there is a difference of opinion?

Is the secretary of state really suggesting, as this comment does, that government Bills should only proceed if there is broad consensus over their aims and objectives? And how can the Bill be in “good shape” if there is a difference of opinion on key elements of it which the government feels it needs to consult on to get right? The other odd thing about this comment is that most people in the industry 20 | 1 December 2023 PT302p20-21.indd 20

seem broadly happy with the proposals emerging from the Plan for Rail. So where is this difference of opinion really coming from?

Perhaps it’s from within the government itself!

The secretary of state also told us that “there will be a debate about the extent to which ministers are still accountable [for the railways]”. And he added that as the industry “becomes more financially sustainable you could potentially change the level to which ministers would have to remain accountable”.

This surely can’t be true. The railways have always depended on taxpayer subsidy and always will. To my knowledge there has never been a debate about the extent to which ministers are accountable. Given the level of subsidy that the railways need, ministers surely

can’t be just “a little bit” accountable. And does the secretary of state really think that the railways could achieve a level of financial sustainability that means ministers would not have to be accountable to parliament for the industry’s performance? This is surely nonsense.

And how is it possible that, 32 months on from the publication of the Plan for Rail, there is still a debate about the nature or extent of ministerial accountability - something that is surely central to the whole issue of the remit and role of Great British Railways.

Indeed, since Network Rail/GBR will always require substantial government grants (the Network Grant for Control Period 7 will be £27.5bn in case anybody needed reminding) the suggestion that the railways collectively could be “financially sustainable” thereby limiting ministerial accountability is implausible. Moreover, the department has made it clear that it will, quite rightly, issue directions and guidance to GBR. So for these reasons, regardless of how financially sustainable passenger services may become, ministers must be, and will always be, accountable to parliament for the railways’ collective performance. This point about accountability is a total red herring, and our secretary of state surely knows it.

The Transport Committee chair, Iain Stewart, also pointed out that the Bill is understood to be short - about 10 clauses.

The secretary of state contended that “the legislative process does not get massively faster just because a piece of legislation is not enormous”. Perhaps this is true in theory, but certainly need not be in practice, especially as in this case the Bill will have cross-party support. And as the parliamentary session has one of the lightest legislative programmes for years, finding the necessary parliamentary time really shouldn’t be a problem.

With cross-party agreement, which would surely be forthcoming, the Bill could pass through all of its legislative stages in pretty swift time. It’s the Committee Stage that takes up most of a Bill’s time in parliament, but I reckon a 10-clause Bill, supported by Labour, would need no more than one day in Committee in both the Commons and the Lords. If a Bill was introduced now I can’t really see any reason why it couldn’t be on the Statute Book by the end of April at the latest. Where there’s a political will, there’s a political way. www.passengertransport.co.uk

30/11/2023 16:17

“There can be only one conclusion from all of this: there is no political will” Which means there can be only one conclusion from all of this: there is no political will.

The strange thing is that the Transport Committee let the secretary of state’s explanations as to why there is only a draft Bill go unchallenged. The committee has experienced MPs on it who are entirely familiar with the legislative process, and they must surely have been left somewhat perplexed by what they were told. Yet there was no challenge, no attempt to question the accuracy or integrity of the secretary of state’s explanations, which itself is baffling.

What’s the point of a select committee if it isn’t going to challenge a secretary of state during an oral evidence session when his or her evidence is, how shall I put this politely, open to question. This Transport Committee is altogether far too polite - and probably has been ever since the late Gwyneth Dunwoody was replaced as its chair.

Network North A word about the status of Network North: Transforming Britain’s Transport. I’ve said before that there must be some doubt whether all of the projects set out in this prospectus would go ahead, principally because the value of the £36bn to be spent on them is at 2019 prices so the value of the funding will be substantially less when it actually comes to be spent given that, so far as I’m aware, there is no commitment to uplift this funding in line with inflation.

And now ministers are pretty much admitting that many of the projects identified are essentially currently only aspirational.

In response to a parliamentary question from Graham Morris, the Labour MP for Easington, who asked “whether all projects cited in Network North will be funded from the £36bn announced”, our minister of state, Huw Merriman replied as follows: “The prime minister set out that all of the savings from Phase 2 of HS2 will be spent on the schemes and projects announced as part of Network North. All schemes will be subject to the development and approval of business cases and will undergo formal governance in line with relevant fiscal and legal duties. Allocations may change as final plans and profiles are agreed.”

So there you have it. All of the £36bn may be spent, but not necessarily on all of the projects set out in Network North because they may not pass the formal, and necessary, approval www.passengertransport.co.uk

PT302p20-21.indd 21

The chancellor, Jeremy Hunt, pictured with his Autumn Statement

of the business case. I’ve got absolutely no complaint about that. Indeed, this is right and proper. But note that Graham Morris asked if all of the projects would be funded, not if all the money would be spent. So the honest answer to Graham Morris’ parliamentary question was a simple “no”. Still, us officials make it an art form to never answer a direct parliamentary question with a direct parliamentary answer!

Autumn Statement On November 22 we had the chancellor’s Autumn Statement. From a public transport perspective I can’t see there’s much in it to get too excited about. For all of the optimism exuded by the chancellor, Jeremy Hunt, and the plethora of tax-cutting measures, it was the following comment from the Office of Budget Responsibility’s report that caught my eye: “living standards, as measured by real household disposable incomes per person, are forecast to be 3.5% lower in 2024-25 than their

pre-pandemic levels… it represents the largest reduction in real living standards since ONS records began in the 1950s”. Ouch!

And departmental spending gets pretty heavily squeezed. This department’s Capital DEL goes from £20.7bn in this financial year to £20.5bn in 2024/25, and our Resource DEL reduces from £6.9bn this year to £5.7bn in 2024/25 - a material cut, and that’s before taking account of inflation.

Whichever party wins the next general election will have some pretty nasty and stark choices to make in terms of public spending and tax policies. I suppose they always do, but this time it’s going to be pretty grim.

If an incoming government wants to increase spending then taxes must go up - yet despite the tax cuts announced in the Autumn Statement the overall tax burden is still increasing and is forecast to be at its highest level since the Second World War. The next general election might actually be a good one to lose!

1 December 2023 | 21

04/12/2023 11:55

CAREERS

Members, supporters, and allies of the ‘Women in Bus and Coach’ initiative in Parliament last week

Women in Bus and Coach visit Parliament

Event at House of Commons saw industry leaders and MPs from all parties hear from members, supporters and allies of the new national initiative DIVERSITY AND INCLUSION

Women in Bus and Coach, the initiative to support women in the bus and coach industry, were welcomed by the All-Party Parliamentary Group for the Road Passenger Transport Industry at an event hosted at the House of Commons last week.

Launched last month (PT301), Women in Bus and Coach is supported by representatives from across the profession, and celebrates and encourages women and allies working in the bus, coach and community transport industry across the whole of the UK. 22 | 1 December 2023 PT302p22-23.indd 22

A wrapped Women in Bus and Coach bus was also displayed at Parliament to commemorate the House of Commons event. The wrapped bus can be seen servicing London bus passengers on route 94 for a short period, running from Acton Green to Charles II Street, travelling past iconic landmarks including Marble Arch, Oxford

Circus and Piccadilly Circus.

During the exclusive event, the attendees, who included prominent senior leaders in the bus and coach industry, together with MPs and political figures from across all parties, heard from members, supporters, and allies of the ‘Women in Bus and Coach’ initiative. The speakers provided

“Today’s event was a unique opportunity to both gain cross-party support for the Women in Bus and Coach initiative” Louise Cheeseman, TfL

an insight on how they will work with operators, manufacturers, community associations and other key stakeholders in the bus and coach industry to effect real change that will encourage, represent, and support more women to work in the bus, coach and community transport industry at every level. This will help deliver a more inclusive profession and services that better meet the needs of women.

The initiative is made up of industry leads and will provide a collaborative forum to share expertise and develop solutions to make sure a career in the bus, coach and community transport industry is attractive to women of all ages, backgrounds, and ethnicities.

It will also work with bus and coach companies to challenge and eliminate barriers currently faced by women in the profession, creating a more inclusive service www.passengertransport.co.uk

30/11/2023 16:15

CALL NOW TO ADVERTISE 020 3950 8000 or email sales@passengertransport.co.uk

that is representative of customers.

The organisation wants women, whatever their background, to have equal access to a career in the industry and a workplace designed around their needs.

At the launch of Women in Bus and Coach at an event in Birmingham on November 8, key stakeholders signed up to the Charter - agreeing to challenge industry policies and practices that do not adequately support women, and to set, review, and publish targets for women in all roles throughout the industry.

Louise Cheeseman, director of buses at Transport for London, and chair of Women in Bus and Coach, said: “Today’s event was a unique opportunity to both gain cross-party support for the Women in Bus and Coach initiative and showcase how we’ve made significant progress in recent years in recruiting more women into the industry.

“We still have a lot of work to do to challenge and eliminate barriers currently faced by women in the profession, I can’t wait to continue working with the bus and coach sector to achieve both a professional environment and culture, and a bus and coach service that works for a wealth of diversity - we are better together.”

The group’s corporate members are: Abellio, Alexander Dennis, Arriva, Brighton & Hove, BYD, Dawson Group, First Bus, Global, Go-Ahead, Lothian, McGill’s, MCV Bus and Coach, Metroline, National Express, RATP Dev, Stagecoach UK Bus, Transport for London, Uno, Volvo and Wrightbus.

Find out more, including how to get involved, at: www.womeninbusandcoach.org.uk You can follow Women in Bus and Coach on LinkedIn and X/Twitter at @WminBusandCoach www.passengertransport.co.uk

PT302p22-23.indd 23

Mason: ‘I really had to earn my place’

APPOINTMENTS

Coach boss explains need for better gender balance CANDICE MASON

Candice Mason, director of business at Tring-based Masons Minibus & Coach Hire has explain why the Women in Bus and Coach initiative is very close to her heart.

Mason initially joined her family-run business on a yearlong sabbatical from work to help her husband, but is still there 10 years later. Speaking to Leon Daniels, formerly of Transport for London, for the Lunch with Leon podcast, which is produced in association with Passenger Transport, she said: “I’ve absolutely loved it, but the downside is I was the only woman in my business for a very long time and I think that you do need a mix of different diversities within a business in order to get a full range of opportunities out of the business. Different people approach things very differently.

Mason added: “I really had to earn my place. I had to earn the respect of male counterparts

A wrapped Women in Bus and Coach bus was displayed

Candice Mason

within the industry, and I just don’t think that that is the future I would want for my daughter.

Mason points out that women have different needs.

“This month a female driver of mine had a miscarriage and that is so difficult,” she said.

“Unless you have got other females within a business that is really difficult for a male to empathise with, to understand what they are going to need and how to support them.”

Meanwhile, she revealed that she has experienced “semiabusive communications” from men within the industry: “I’ve grown a bit of a thick skin and I am capable of standing up for myself. Well that’s great, but that isn’t OK for that to be the case.”

CILT (UK) The Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport in the UK has announced the appointment of Paul Adams as chief executive officer.

With over 20 years of global experience in senior leadership, Adams (pictured) joins CILT(UK) from the Institute of Directors, where he served as national director/chief operating officer for two years. He has also led both small and large teams in the notfor-profit, membership, training and commercial sectors.

Prior to joining the Institute of Directors, Adams held various chief executive roles in the charity sector, including chief executive of the Civil Mediation Council from 2018 to 2021 and the Clive Richards Foundation.

With 17 years of military service, including frontline experience in multiple conflict zones, CILT (UK) said Adams brings a wealth of leadership experience.

MIDLAND METRO Sophie Allison has been appointed managing director of Midland Metro after carrying out the role on an interim basis for the last two years.

Allison (pictured) has already steered the tram operator through a major period of change and the expansion of the network – including the opening of two extensions and the growth of the fleet.

She joined Centro, the predecessor of Transport for West Midlands, in 2006 and moved to Midland Metro, as head of business transformation, when it took over West Midlands Metro light rail operations in 2018.

1 Decmeber 2023 | 23

30/11/2023 16:15

DIVERSIONS

Bus Heroes (and sheep) are awards highlights Jane Hill notes that not all heroes wear capes The UK Bus Awards unites industry leaders and frontline staff in a unique event. Prior to the ceremony, BBC newsreader and awards host Jane Hill highlighted some of the extraordinary acts of bus staff in the Bus Heroes section, showcasing how they went the extra mile.

Bus drivers from RATP Dev Transit London and Warrington’s Own Buses featured this year, along with a Stagecoach Manchester young manager.

Their selfless acts showcased the dedication of bus industry professionals who go beyond their day-to-day responsibilities.

RATP Dev Transit London driver David Ajetunmobi rushed to aid a collapsed teenage passenger, obtaining a defibrillator and convincing the reluctant youth to seek medical attention.

Meanwhile, Carlyle Brown another RATP Dev Transit London driver, administered life-saving CPR to an elderly passenger in cardiac arrest.

Heather White of Warrington’s

Own Buses also performed CPR on a woman at a bus stop, saving her life. Meanwhile, last November, just days before becoming the Silver Winner in the UK Bus Awards Young Manager of the Year 2022 competition, Zachary McAskill was outside Stagecoach Manchester’s Hyde Road depot when he bravely intervened in an assault. He was able to calm the situation down, preventing potential harm.

There was also the story of Domingos Correia, an Arriva driver whose story we covered a couple of issues ago. He went above and beyon to help Codey,

But did it pay the £2 fare?

PLEASE START MY SUBSCRIPTION TO PASSENGER TRANSPORT

an anxious 11-year-old, ensuring a safe return home after boarding the wrong bus without a fully charged phone.

But raising a laugh at Troxy London, in a tale clearly relished by self-confessed animal lover Jane Hill, was the story of Brighton & Hove Buses driver Martine Patey.

She was approaching the busy A27 dual carriageway with a double decker bus on her way to Eastbourne to cover a rail replacement duty when she saw a sheep run out from behind a car. With a clear duty to get to Eastbourne in time to pick up her shift, she could have driven straight past, but realising that there could be an accident, she pulled in and went after the errant sheep.

Remarkably, Martine was able to lasso the sheep with the straps on - wait for it - her handbag and wrangle it onto her bus where she and a couple of other motorists who stopped looked after it until the police, and later the farmer, arrived and took it away.

And guess what? She made it to her rail replacement duty in Eastbourne just one minute late!

All annual subscription rates include delivery by secondclass post, or airmail for overseas.

ANNUAL SUBSCRIPTION RATES 1 year UK: £140 EU & Rest of World: £280 2 year UK: £250 3 year

SEEN SOMETHING QUIRKY? Why not drop us a line at editorial@passengertransport.co.uk

PT302

SECURITY CODE SIGNATURE

NAME JOB TITLE

ADDRESS UK: £375

Email: subs@passengertransport.co.uk Return to: Subscriptions, Passenger Transport Publishing Ltd, PO Box 5496, Westbury BA13 9BX

PT302p24.indd 24

Residents at Haslingden Hall, a care home in Lancashire, are in for a heartwarming treat thanks to Transdev Blazefield.

For many residents, memories of meeting partners, spending time with loved ones, or even just a trip to the shops on the bus have faded due to dementia.

Transdev’s Rosso operation has stepped in and installed a bus stop in the home’s gardens. It aims to serve as a focal point, rekindling the cherished memories of bus journeys of the past.

“Going by bus holds precious memories for people,” noted Rosso customer services manager Phil Harris.

COMPANY

WWW.PASSENGERTRANSPORT.CO.UK

24 | 1 December 2023

A BUS STOP FOR HAPPY MEMORIES

I enclose a cheque for £ made payable to Passenger Transport Publishing Limited Please invoice my company (official order enclosed) I authorise you to debit my Mastercard/VISA/Maestro/VISA Electron card. Amount £

CARD NUMBER

SUBSCRIPTION ORDER FORM EXPIRY DATE

Staff and residents join Rosso’s team

POSTCODE TEL EMAIL

DATE

www.passengertransport.co.uk

30/11/2023 16:11