Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Mayor Dr Nik Johnson reiterated his ambitions to franchise the area’s bus network as he welcomed the launch of 30 new electric buses for Cambridge last week.
Almost exactly two years into his role with the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Combined Authority (CPCA), Dr Johnson says he is seeking to put together the business case for devolution of control of the network.
Such a move would build on the authority’s partnership with Stagecoach East, the biggest operator in the area, and the Greater Cambridge Partnership (GCP), which brought in £15 million in Zero Emission Bus Regional Areas (ZEBRA) funding for the fleet of Volvo BZL double-deckers.
The Mayor said: “There’s no secret. I have always been a metro Mayor who has talked about the importance of taking control of the bus network, but always doing that with constituent partners.
“I’m moving towards it, but you have to go through due process in terms of making sure the business case lines up. But I have real belief that we will completely move towards franchising as long as we can get all the sums to stack up, although it will never be as quick as I would it to be.”
Local authority partnerships are the way forward for delivering the best for local transport, Dr Johnson believes. “One of the big things that’s changed over the last two years is the ability for the two devolved authorities to work together in collaboration and we’ll look at all the things that come out of GCP’s work and make sure we get the best solutions for all of Cambridgeshire and Peterborough,” he added.
Among GCP’s Making Connections plans is an overhaul of the local network, offering longer and more routes and fares of £1 within Cambridge and £2 outside the city. Results from a public consultation will next month be discussed by the GCP board, who could then decide to make a recommendation to Cambridge City Council.
Elisa Meschini, chair of the GCP board, says Cambridgeshire faces particular challenges with an infrastructure unable to cope with a population that is growing 15% above national average. “If you don’t make the buses attractive people will not get out of their cars, the roads will stay congested,” she said. “The system is not coping, we need more buses and we need more people moving sustainably.”
Stagecoach East Managing Director Darren Roe welcomed the work of the GCPA and CPCA partnership in the region.
“Without that partnership big capital projects just wouldn’t happen, so we were really fortunate we’ve got a great partner and a strong relationship with the combined authority,” he said. “We’ve got a good relationship with the GCP and we are fortunate to bring both together with the Department for Transport fund from the project as well.”
