Sector wants additional recognition of the importance of coach tourism for the environment and local economies
With the ongoing saga over coach parking in Bourton-on-the-Water becoming ever more critical, operators have called for local authorities and the government to sufficiently value the importance of coach tourism to urban centres.
After several years of difficulties for operators at the Gloucestershire tourist hotspot, the Bourton Vale coach parking area is set to close permanently on 31 December. Bourton Visitor Centre confirmed earlier this month that, as things stood, there would be no designated coach drop-off and pick-up point, or parking area for coaches in the village in the new year.
It is understood little progress has been made with suggested alternatives. Critics have talked of a “catastrophic impact” on local businesses if no solution is found.
Bourton Business Network member Andrew Lund-Yates says: “In our view, as a business community, if coaches were to stop coming to this beautiful part of the country, which most of us recognise we are very fortunate to call home, we are denying access to a demographic that generally has no other means of travel – older or less agile people, international travellers.
I am appalled that our local council … has done nothing to assist and resolve the situation – Andrew Pulham
“Our own business at The Old New Inn and Model Village estimates that 15% of our business comes from coach visitors alone and that, coupled with [other increases in costs] is just not sustainable.”
Andrew Pulham, Managing Director of local operator Pulham’s Coaches, adds: “I have lived in the village for the last 54 years and have run the family coach business for the last 24 of those and I am appalled that our local council, Cotswold District Council (CDC), which has known about the privately owned coach parking facilities’ closure for the last two years, has done nothing to assist and resolve the situation.”
In a statement, CDC tells routeone: “The council has worked very hard over the past two years to find a solution to coach parking in Bourton-on-the-Water following the decision by the private car park owner to stop providing coach parking.
“No stone has been left unturned and we will continue to work with the county council, police, local businesses and the parish council to help manage coach visits to the village.”
CDC adds that it has led community groups in exploring several alternatives, “none of which were deemed to be feasible for a number of reasons”.
A wider issue
The Bourton-on-the-Water scenario is a particularly dire example, but operators have told routeone that problems exist elsewhere and have asked for more respect for the industry.
Robert Shaw, Director of Coventry-based operator Harry Shaw and Chair of the Coach Tourism Association (CTA), says the fiasco in Bourton-on-the-Water seems to be unmatched nationally, but adds other towns and cities do not show enough respect for the sector.
“Coach tourism does bring considerable and vital revenues into local businesses,” he says. “Most towns and cities do seem to appreciate this and do try to provide us with coach drop-off and parking facilities.
“There are also the environmental benefits of travelling by coach. Local authorities, I understand, are tasked with taking every possible step they can to reduce emissions and improve air quality. Coach travel is one of the most environmentally friendly ways to travel and does reduce car usage, so I would have thought it would be an essential part of any policy.”
Amid hints that coaches could even be banned from Bourton-on-the-Water via a Traffic Regulation Order, Mr Shaw adds: “It’s a dangerous trend if [local authorities] can be seen to be effectively banning coaches and tourists from their area.
“If it does become a trend, I think central government must take action to override the power of the local authorities to implement measures like this, bearing in mind the environmental benefits that coach travel brings and the revenues for local businesses.”
Edinburgh problems
Within days of the confirmation of the Bourton Vale closure, Maynes Coaches was reporting severe difficulties in Edinburgh as part of an ongoing problem.
Operations Director Kevin Mayne says that coach bays at the official drop-off point for the UK’s second-busiest tourist destination city were full of cars. Maynes’ driver then had to find a safe drop-off point for 58 people. Mr Mayne has been working with City of Edinburgh Council, the Confederation of Passenger Transport, CTA, and the European Tourism Association to find a solution.
It’s ridiculous what’s gone on in Bourton-on-the-Water, but it’s mirrored across the whole of the UK – Kevin Mayne
He believes that the council wants to move towards coach drop-offs and pick-ups outside the city outskirts and shuttles to the centre via tram. However, he says: “Every minute further away from the town or city centre is a minute less spent there, a minute less in the shops, a minute less putting cash into the local economy.”
He adds: “You have a coach taking 50 cars off the road, but it’s only taking three parking spaces up. It’s ridiculous what’s gone on in Bourton-on-the-Water, but it’s mirrored across the whole of the UK. We need to have similar ability to drop off as the bus does.”
Councillor Scott Arthur, the council’s Transport and Environment Convener, says: “We value the coach industry, which transports so many visitors to Edinburgh. Through both our City Mobility Plan and City Centre Transformation, we’re working hard on a coach strategy, which includes identifying an approach for coach pick-up and drop-off and parking that maintains access for coach-based visitors. As part of this we’ve been working with industry representatives, including Phil Smith and Kevin Mayne, to take their views into account.
“In the meantime, we’ll continue liaising with parking colleagues to identify areas for coaches to drop off.”
Cars favoured by local councils?
More issues have been experienced further south. Liv Rayment, Operations Manager for East Sussex-based Hams Travel, tells routeone about a coach park in nearby Tunbridge Wells which was turned into a car park a few years ago despite not feeling the latter was needed.
She says: “Now there’s two places left to park in the town and they’re relied upon by both coaches and buses, and, on a busy days, there’s nothing left. It’s almost like councils are trying to get rid of the tourism aspect of the towns. It’s more like they want more cars in the town, whereas you’d think it would be the opposite. It is incredibly frustrating for us trying to find places to park a lot of time.”
Following the removal a few years ago of the well-established coach park in Hastings, the alternative up a steep hill and the tricky route into it proved unsatisfactory, Stephen Dine, Managing Director of the local Empress Coaches, tells us. “The only coaches that in the main visit Hastings now are from abroad,” he says.
CPT statement
Phil Smith, Coaching Manager at the Confederation of Passenger Transport (CPT), says: “Coaches are vital to the UK’s tourism industry, and contribute an estimated £2m a year to Bourton-on-the-Water.
“It is essential that sufficient and well-located parking is available for coaches in order to accommodate the current tourism demand in the region. Coaches are also a sustainable mode of transport, with one full coach able to take up to 50 cars off the road, which helps to reduce congestion and results in cleaner air.
“In the event of there being no solution to the coach parking issues at Bourton-on-the-Water, CPT seeks to reassure members that it is currently working on alternative potential visitor locations that could embrace coach visits elsewhere in the Cotswolds.
“We continue to call on Cotswold District Council to work in partnership with CPT, local operators and Bourton Business Network to find a solution for alternative coach parking in the area before it is too late.”
