In the wake of £80 million in Bus Service Improvement Plan Plus allocations and almost £1 billion further funding for bus linked to the partial scrapping of HS2, more public investment needs to go into the coach sector, believes Andy Warrender, RHA Operations Manager for Coaches.
Mr Warrender has called on the government to recognise the value of coaches to the public and wider industry with support in meeting rising costs, decarbonisation and accessibility regulations. “Ever since I’ve been in this industry, every year something has come along that has cost the industry and, all too often, has never been recouped,” he says before mentioning tachographs, emissions standards and seat belts as examples. “These have always been costs that have been difficult but nonetheless manageable. But the levels of investment that are going to be required to support zero-emissions in future are way, way above anything that we’ve ever seen.”
He says that debt accrued by many coach businesses during the pandemic means the industry is “not in an extremely healthy place” and will need outside investment to facilitate future decarbonisation goals. He adds: “If we look forward to where the industry has got to go, we’re looking at decarbonising, we’re looking at the infrastructure that has got to support it, both in depot and on the road, and in the vehicles themselves. Nobody’s really sure where things are going to go with it.
Referring to wider costs, he adds: “Cost pressures overall have put a lot of stress on the industry. The cost of vehicles is up, in some cases over 30% over three years. Wage costs are increasing. The price even of things like spare parts is increasing again, quite dramatically.” He reiterated RHA’s calls for a fuel duty rebate which he says would help operators to meet costs.
While appreciating the need for operators to make services more accessible, he says on that subject: “I’m not going to take responsibility away from those operators, who have to move towards making the industry more accessible. But I think there has to be a realistic view of what is actually achievable. We’ve said in the past that 100% accessible vehicles does not result in 100% accessible journeys because infrastructure is a big part of it.”
He adds: “It’s disappointing that the rest of the transport industry as a whole hasn’t really seen anything I would say is forward investment from what’s been saved on HS2. I think that’s a missed opportunity.
“The coach sector supports British industry, tourism, education, the leisure sector, so it’s disappointing the government hasn’t yet recognised that.”
