I spend a lot of time considering – and standing up for – bus links that cross local authority boundaries. My reasoning is simple (well, I think it is!): nobody owns a car that expires at those boundaries, so why should bus users be artificially limited?
It has been thus since the early days where companies were prevented from carrying passengers within defined areas, and ‘corporations’ from venturing over their borders. At one point, Ribble’s Bolton to Clitheroe service could not carry locally within Bolton, nor for a long stretch from Darwen to the northern edge of Blackburn. It is a wonder there was anyone left.
Politicians seem to revel in civic insularity. Stockton-on-Tees Council had a list of key destinations for its tendered services. Of course, the regional centre, Middlesbrough, was explicitly excluded.
We have had more recent bouts of silliness including on the border between Flintshire and Cheshire, and between the West of England Combined Authority and Gloucestershire. This sort of thing is why I worry for the future.
So why Skelmersdale? Well, Skelmersdale sits in a southerly enclave of Lancashire surrounded by Merseyside to the west and Greater Manchester to the east.
Its key service is Arriva North West’s 375 and 385 axis linking Southport to Wigan. The Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA) took a pragmatic approach to cross-boundary services, with a 50% rule to decide whether they became part of the Bee Network or not, so within Greater Manchester, the 375 and 385 operate under a permit.
The unknown is what would have happened if GMCA had decided that these services were of no public benefit and not granted the permit. There seems to be no avenue of appeal, certainly not to the Traffic Commissioner. Plus, granting a permit is not the same as committing to its future survival.
Liverpool City Region bus franchising is coming. The western terminus of the 375 and 385 lies in Merseyside, and although only a small percentage of route mileage also sits within Merseyside, it could, in theory, be part of a franchise.
More importantly, Southport depot is where the buses operating 375/385 duties come from. That operating centre will almost certainly be taken over by the franchise. So which company then operates it? The dearth of local operators is shown by the Skelmersdale rail link being run by Preston Bus – its depot being a cool 23 miles away.
The Skelmersdale question is replicated in many places. About eight miles to the south-east, Greater Manchester joins Merseyside around Golborne. Which one looks after Wigan to St Helens? The worry is that neither does…
