It was an early start for delegates to be at the QEII Centre, adjacent to Westminster Abbey in London, yet this didn’t deter almost 300 people packing into the main auditorium to hear Transport Minister Andrew Jones give his keynote address to the UK Bus Summit.
While he was able to reveal little new, given the slower-than-expected progress of the Bus Services Bill, he used the opportunity to confirm that the government intends to take the Bill largely back to its original form.
Modifications made in the House of Lords – particularly to allow any local authority to have franchising – will be overturned, he promised.
With 16 other speakers, the Summit was broken into four key chunks. The disadvantage of arranging the programme six months in advance, admitted Summit Chairman Professor David Begg, was that events could overtake it.
Therefore, the session on bus policy in a post-Brexit world was allowed to go off-piste; a decision welcomed by the speakers.
Recurring themes
Both in the presentations and panel Q&A sessions, some themes recurred and anyone who didn’t know too much about the UK bus industry would have gone away with some key messages.
The inequity of underfunding of the English National Concessionary Travel Scheme (ENCTS), and its corrosive effect on rural networks, was covered on more than one occasion.
Responding to a question about rural networks, the Minister said he envisaged a future without local authority subsidy, arguing that routes and services should be made more attractive to more passengers. “It’s about bums on seats,” he says.
The point that the rate of reimbursement is too low to correctly reimburse for travel made appeared to be lost on him.
The other big point that came up throughout the day was the crippling effect of congestion.
A 2016 study on the subject had clearly set out the case, and more than one speaker was able to point to definitive figures showing that for every 1mph reduction in urban bus speeds, there is a 1% reduction in use.
The correlation between the rising car ownership – with areas such as the north east and south Wales having the biggest increases – and declining bus use were also laid bare, as was the steep decline in ridership before deregulation.
Fresh view
While Wales and Northern Ireland were not politically represented at the Summit, the appearance of the Scottish Government’s Minister for Transport Humza Yousaf came as a breath of fresh air for many delegates.
He spoke eloquently about how Scotland has an overall view on transport, enabling it to make joined-up decisions, and how the Edinburgh government is agnostic about ownership and control of networks – focusing instead on outcomes.
Rather than wrapping his comments in the often-familiar woolly politicians’ fug, it was clear that not only does he fully command his brief, but that plans are in place to make a positive difference. He also revealed, for example, that he has involved coach and bus operators in discussions about trunk road policy.
Similarly, Deputy Mayor of London Val Shawcross clearly set out the political objectives and priorities for Transport for London (TfL), and the challenges – not least on funding – that it faces, with the need to be free of subsidy in 2020.
She revealed that the ‘hopper’ fare ticket – a policy allowing two bus journeys for one fare within an hour – introduced at the behest of Mayor Sadiq Khan, passed 40m journeys this week.
Congestion is a London issue that she didn’t dodge – revealing that the fall-off in London bus patronage has a direct correlation to bus speeds. She also confirmed that the commitment to have the entire London bus fleet at a minimum of Euro 6 (partly achieved by engine re-powers) by 2020 still stands.
Operator perspective
Stagecoach CEO Martin Griffiths took up the debate; opening by saying what is fundamental and hasn’t changed since the 2016 Summit is that "congestion is killing our industry.”
Referring to Minister Andrew Jones’ comments, he added: “I don’t mind the industry not being dependent on subsidy” before criticising him for describing ENCTS as a ‘subsidy’ to the industry.
“Politicians make conscious choices about what they want to do for social and political reasons, but at the end of the day we [as a country] have to decide whether we can afford it.
“Free concessionary travel is a benefit to the passenger. We are delighted to carry them, but we have to be properly paid for it, if it is going to be sustainable.”
Green journeys
On the day that Greener Journeys’ report – Any Journey is Greener by Bus – was published, both its CEO Claire Haigh and LowCVP MD Andy Eastlake spoke on the topic.
Mr Eastlake reported that properly marketed, introducing green buses has a greater impact on passenger growth. “People won’t necessarily make a journey because it’s a green bus, but being green means that passengers feel that their choice has been validated, and they feel good about it.”
The political aspect of green travel was picked up on by Transport for London (TfL) MD Surface Transport Leon Daniels. He also pointed to the benefits for transport policy of having strong political leadership.
He also argues that the industry needs to adapt. Citing changes to payment types, as many young people simply take a phone and debit card with them, he says that modern payment platforms are essential.
The conference concluded with an examination of the methods of control that PTEs wish to consider and joined up journeys, giving delegates final food for thought.
