The Way Forward With Modern Public Transport

 

The Way Forward With Modern Public Transport

An industry with little prospect, or an industry with maximum potential?

Let's begin with the bus industry. An industry that has changed a lot over the years. Back when public transport commenced operation within Britain, it was just that - a service for the public without concentrating on maximising profit to satisfy CEO's or large companies. The majority of operators were municipally owned and were operated for the purpose of carrying passengers from one destination to another. Although the primary purpose of operating a public transport service has not changed, the focus has shifted from operating for the public; to operating to generate as much income as possible for the operator and parent company. 

This is not a coincidence that this focus has changed since many operators are privately owned. With investment companies and larger international operators owning transport operators across the United Kingdom, the emphasis on profit becomes even more of a priority. I fully appreciate that a business has to meet it's costs, but equally a service not being 'commercially viable' is a far cry from what operation used to be like.

I understand that costs are rising for every business in the country, but with the dependency on public transport still being high, a service being withdrawn for reasons of cost or lack of use is not in the best interests of the community. Again, I appreciate that if only one or two people use a service, then it is inefficient to continue to operate. However, an alternative solution should be found; in the form of a community bookable service for example. This not only eradicates any unnecessary running, but also ensures that transport is still accessible.

Pressure on operators is something that is very apparent with tighter emission limits and penalties introduced for non compliance. As a result, newer vehicles are needed to ensure that operators can operate within the limits set. Clearly, an investment like this has a serious impact on businesses as it costs hundreds of thousands of pounds to purchase new vehicles (even used they are expensive).

 UK Government regularly mention that they would like for public transport to be operated by the local authority for the respective area of operation. This could have severe consequences as local authorities are not particularly suited to operating public transport. Some areas it does work well, but where I am from in Bournemouth; I wouldn't hold much hope for BCP Council to operate anything at all. 

Problems with a local authority operating public transport:

- Lack of experience in operating essential services.

- Likelihood of withdrawing 'non essential' services.

- Initial expenditure to purchase businesses from current owners.

- Reduction of frequencies, that could have potential of losing customers.

Not an exhaustive list, but this gives you an idea of a few of the problems they may face.

Solution or short term fix?

Some of the strategies used by operators are questionable at best. I believe that some of the 'solutions' that operators decide on are only likely to cause further harm in the future. I will use the now defunct Bournemouth Transport Limited (BTL) as an example.

Bournemouth Transport Limited ceased operation in August 2022. This was due to a combination of factors, but bad decision making was at the forefront of why it occurred.

- Introducing an entirely different set of route numbers across the network in 2017 was one of the worst decisions they could have ever made. It caused mass confusion and made very little sense to anyone that was a customer or prospective customer.

- Poor vehicle maintenance standards. This caused a never ending course of vehicle breakdowns. It has since been discovered that Bournemouth Transport Limited did not pay suppliers for goods received etcetera. Clearly this meant that the suppliers were not willing to supply anything more until invoices were satisfied.

- Branding of vehicles that rarely saw the route it was branded for (particularly prevalent towards the end of Bournemouth Transport Limited).

- Purchase of older vehicles that would only really have been appropriate for school contracts at best.

- Failure to operate at the service levels registered with the Office of the Traffic Commissioner. 

Again, not an exhaustive list but gives an idea of how a failing business becomes completely insolvent through poor management.

Of course Bournemouth Transport Limited making these poor decisions lead to their major competitor (Go South Coast) taking over the routes that BTL had previously operated. Whilst it can be appreciated that Go South Coast are part of a larger group of companies (Go-Ahead), resources are still finite. 

Recruitment and Retention of Staff

One of the major concerns for all operators across the country is the lack of staff (particularly driving staff). This has been a growing problem for many years. In my five and a half years of driving within the industry, I have seen multiple times where a driver joins the respective company and subsequently leaves when they discover that it isn't necessarily what they were expecting. The job can have severe detriment on social and home life as it isn't a simple 09:00 - 17:00 duty. To become a driver you have to get used to long duties, late finishes and last minute changes. Equally, if you enjoy the job it can be very rewarding. Every day is different and the variety is something I enjoy in particular. I have always said that it takes a very unique person to be a bus driver, and in particular a driver who makes a career out of the job.

Local Authority Supported or Commercially Operated?

Local authorities must play a part in funding essential services. Again, some services could be operated on a on demand basis where a scheduled service is not required. These type of services are more appropriate in rural areas, where demand is significantly lower than in urban areas. 

Longevity of Vehicle Service Life

Vehicles in modern day life tend to have a much shorter service life, inferior quality and manufacturing methods changing being primary factors for this. Operators tend to opt for more fuel efficient vehicles. These vehicles are very comfortable to drive in the majority of cases, and the passenger experience is generally satisfactory. However, the service life of the vehicles is far less than what would have been achieved previously. Coachwork is one of the major downfalls of modern buses, water ingress and panels becoming loose (interior and exterior) being very common.

Over Expansion and Detriment Caused

It is no secret that operators can over expand beyond available resources. This is something that occurs for example when the local authority require a service to run on a tendered basis. If the area of operation only has one operator, the options are very limited for the local authority. Example:

ABC Buses put forward a bid for the contract. However, they do not have sufficient resources to ensure that operating service 1 will not interfere with other services. As ABC Buses are the sole operator in the area, it then becomes a choice between no service or a service that can impact on other services.