Regulatory action is to be taken against the 19-vehicle international O-Licence held by Newent-based George Young’s Coaches, Traffic Commissioner (TC) Nick Denton warned at the close of a Birmingham Public Inquiry (PI).
At a previous PI in September 2018, the O-Licence was suspended for seven days. Undertakings were given that George Young’s Coaches Director Gwendoline Young would step down as Transport Manager (TM) by 31 October 2018, that a new TM would be nominated by 5 November 2018 and that roller brake tests would be carried out every 12 weeks.
Mr Denton said that but for those undertakings, the O-Licence would not have survived on the last occasion.
Contract concern about George Young’s Coaches TM
Edward Berry was nominated as TM by 5 November 2018, but no contract was submitted until April 2019. The document was not a contract. It was merely a signed agreement. Mr Berry did not act as TM during that period and Mrs Young did not step down.
On 9 May at a school bus check, a Gloucestershire County Council engineer found numerous serious defects on one of the company’s vehicles, including exhaust fumes and water entering the interior.
Director Kevin Young agreed that Mr Berry had never taken up his position as TM. Mr Young had never paid Mr Berry. He had refused any money.
Mr Young was going to take the CPC exam himself this month. Agreeing that roller brake tests were not carried out when they should have been, he said that was because the maintenance contractor at the time could not always access a rolling road. That was why the maintenance contractor had been changed.
The TC said that the declared inspection period was eight weeks. One vehicle that had gone 21 weeks between inspections was said to be off the road, and yet there were 36 driver defect reports during that period.
Mr Young maintained that the vehicle would have been inspected, but he accepted that there was no paperwork.
Situation was getting worse, found TC Denton
The TC pointed out that was a similar issue at the previous PI. Mr Young agreed with the TC’s comments that the records were pure fiction. The TC commented that the situation was, if anything, worse than it was last September. Some of the inspection records he had examined were showing 30 to 40 defects.
After the TC commented that the company seemed to have taken the opportunity to operate elderly vehicles without maintaining them properly, Mr Young said that the vehicle involved in the school bus check was no longer running. They had replaced a lot of the fleet.
Vehicle Examiner Nathan Harwood said that when he visited the company in September, he was told that Mr Berry was on holiday. Mr Harwood was given the impression that Mr Berry was a functioning TM and that he attended most days.
Mr Harwood agreed that vehicle condition at the time was mostly satisfactory.
After it was argued that the Youngs’ understanding that Mr Berry’s appointment as TM was in addition to Mrs Young, the TC said that the appointment of Mr Berry was “a sham”. He will issue his decision in writing.
