Former Newport Transport Managing Director Scott Pearson will remain in the industry by continuing as Chair of trade body the Coach and Bus Association Cymru (CaBAC).
Mr Pearson was among the founders of CaBAC, and through his leadership of both the Association and Newport Transport he played a major part in negotiating various recovery support packages for the bus industry that were forthcoming from the Welsh Government.
He stepped down from Newport Transport towards the end of 2023, but during his tenure he was credited with the widespread adoption of battery-electric buses and expansion of the municipal business’s coach arm. The latter saw it become the operator of the first zero-emission coaches in Wales.
In confirming that he will remain as Chair of CaBAC, Mr Pearson notes that 2024 and 2025 “are going to be challenging for SMEs,” and that “I was very humbled when members asked me to stay on.”
He adds: “My initial expectation was that not being an operator [anymore] would mean less ability to influence, but in fact, it appears that now being outside the operating sphere means that I can be even more candid.”
Mr Pearson has long been a vocal critic of the Welsh Government’s proposals to franchise the country’s bus services, with his concerns centring on the cost and financial viability of those plans and the risks they post to SME businesses.
In continuing as Coach and Bus Association Cymru Chair, he says that one of his primary concerns is ensuring that the voice of SME operators is heard in reregulation work.
Also coming in for criticism by CaBAC is The Roadmap to Bus Reform. It was recently published by Transport for Wales (TfW) as an indicator of the direction of franchising in Wales. Mr Pearson describes it as lacking detail and says that such information on the planned process has been consistently missing.
He has also called into question the ability of TfW to lead the transition and the proportion of its budget that goes towards rail services, despite bus accounting for the bulk of public transport journeys in Wales.
