Bristol City Council invite bus companies to bid for routes
BRISTOL City Council is inviting bus companies to bid to run every single journey it helps pay for – in a move that could end First's dominance.
The council says it wants to encourage more operators to come into Bristol, to improve services and drive down prices. Critics say the move is just a "smokescreen" and could result in service cuts.
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Bristol City Council invite bus companies to bid for routes
The authority pays £4,277,759 of taxpayers' money to subsidise routes – 24 run by First, 21 by Wessex Connect and two by Buglers – every year.
Services affected include the First 8/9 Temple Meads Circular; the night flyer buses by Wessex Connect, the park-and - ride services by both companies; the 500 Harbour Link and the 952 school bus by Buglers.
The supported journeys operate mainly in the morning (about 5am to 7am), evenings (mostly after 7.30pm), Sundays and bank holidays. Bus operators say they need the subsidies as the routes are not used enough to be commercially viable without support.
Normally the council would only put a small number of routes out to tender at a time.
But from September all the subsidised elements of the 47 routes will be put together in three or four packages that operators, including First, will be able to bid for. The authority would still subsidise the routes but could end up paying less to prop them up.
City council cabinet member for transport Gary Hopkins said: "This isn't going ahead on a basis of cuts. Competition is good for business – other cities have lower weekly bus fares.
"What we've had in the past is operators saying 'we're not making a profit, we need a subsidy or we're going to take it off'. We're still going to be subsidising them, we want to see how much subsidy operators will ask for to run these routes. The key thing is we need to get fares down, and the only way to change that is to get more competition.
"While things like smart cards and improved enforcement of bus lanes may not seem that big, bus companies are now saying to us Bristol is a good place to do business, which wasn't the case a few years ago."
In theory, one operator could run subsidised services and another run the unsubsidised buses on the same route. Mr Hopkins argued it was more likely the operator who runs the majority of services on a particular route would agree to run the subsidised journeys as well, but at a loss.
Campaigners argue this approach is not realistic, and point to previously subsidised bus services such as the 52, that were cut despite public outcry.
Campaign for Better Transport spokesman Dave Redgewell said: "First and Flights Hallmark (Wessex Connect) are the only companies big enough to bid for these sorts of tenders. The council is not going to get more operators in the middle of a recession.
"Buses are big businesses. Operators want the daytime services, not the night-time services. We're very concerned this is just a smokescreen to cut services. They need to create an integrated transport authority to get control of the network. The name on the side of the bus isn't the issue. It's whether they run on time, whether they're clean and have low floors."
The council aims to have the tender process completed by next summer.
A First spokeswoman said: "The Council is perfectly within its rights to re-tender those bus services it supports. As and when they put the revised tenders out we, like I am sure many other operators, will consider whether we wish to submit a bid for them."
A Wessex Connect spokesman said: "We're very interested in engaging in the tendering process for any work the council will be tendering that we can provide a proper level of service for, whether that's work that we already carry out or work we don't."
21 Comments
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by yickersrule
Thursday, June 09 2011, 11:52PM
“all buses are the same ! late huge prices so really not much differents”
by Pete, Chippenham
Wednesday, August 11 2010, 4:09PM
“Hedgehog, an Integrated Transport Authority won't help you I'm afraid. West Yorkshire ITA, and South Yourkshire ITA are as powerless to control the activities of First in Leeds and Sheffield as Bristol CC is. See typical newspaper article (may sound familiar?):
thestar.co.uk/news/What-do-you-think-of.6370272.jp
Bristol never had directly operated municipal public transport, the closest it got was the 'Bristol Joint Services Agreement' from 1937 to 1978 where it had a financial stake in the city service provided by the Bristol Omnibus Company.
wikipedia.org/wiki/Bristol_Omnibus_Company
Examples of other cities' fares:
Nottingham City Transport (municipal):
Adult single £1.60 / Day ticket £3.20
nctx.co.uk/fares/onthebus/index.asp
Plymouth Citybus (Go Ahead Group):
Adult singles 90p, £1.30, £1.70, £2.10
Adult Returns £1.30, £1.90, £2.50, £3
Day Ticket £3.30
plymouthcitybus.co.uk/faresandtickets.asp
Cardiff Bus (Municipal):
Adult Single £1.50
Adult Return £3 (Day Rider)
cardiffbus.com/fares.shtml
Yellow Buses Bournemouth (Transdev):
Adult Singles £1.10, £1.60, £1.90
Adult Returns £1.60, £2.30, £3.30
Day Ticket £3.70
bybus.co.uk/fare-information/index.php”
by The Hedgehog, Horfield
Tuesday, August 10 2010, 4:19PM
“"If there is a traffic jam, the buses will sit in traffic with everyone else"
Well said, Nikita. In particular, where traffic lights are deliberately phased against the main road, as at the Gloucester Road/Bath Buildings crossroads, the buses are held up with all the other traffic. I believe it's called "traffic calming".”
by The Hedgehog, Horfield
Tuesday, August 10 2010, 4:15PM
“"why doesn't the council axe the bus companies, run the bus service itself but get the shops & business interests to subsidise the cost of running the service"
Because it can't, under that nice Mrs Thatcher's legislation, laws that the raving socialist Tory B Liar failed to repeal.
Now, an Integrated Transport Authority would have that power, but the local Toytown councils can't be doing with that...”
by Nikita, Bristol
Monday, August 09 2010, 10:27AM
“Maybe the First director should try that undercover boss show. I doubt many of the drivers (though no fault of their own) know what he looks like) then he could see what the fare paying commuters of Bristol have to put up with. Crammed buses, high fares, low morale bus drivers, passesngers holding on for dear life on some routes.
If there is a traffic jam, the buses will sit in traffic with everyone else, there are some bus lanes, but only in town or towards Bath Rd, so not much can be done about that. Clean buses wouldbe good.
I think he would change his ways if he took the view point of the passenger.”
by daisy, Bristol
Monday, August 09 2010, 9:53AM
“As if, will only get bottle and golf balls thrown at it!”
by David, Bristol
Monday, August 09 2010, 8:24AM
“There is a perfectly good solution to the problem of using tickets on differnet company's buses; bring in an equivalent of the London Oyster card. This has been suggested but should be given a high priority.
So far as punctuality is concerned it would help if adequate information was provided to reduce the practice of passengers using bus drivers as an information centre. It would also help if changes of driver could take place, where possible, at the end of route rather than a bus going a few hundred yards from the Centre, having waited there for maybe 10 minutes, and then pulling up in Whitefriars for another 5 minutes or so while one driver signs off and the relief driver signs on.”
by Scott, Bristol
Sunday, August 08 2010, 7:32PM
“@Rob
Buses shouldn't be late anyway. I was sat on a First Bus at the start of the journey and the driver didn't pull out until 5 minutes after he was meant to.
As for fares, well, the fares are always changing so you don't know what to get out ready.
As for passes, putting your card into one of those card readers hardly takes 5 seconds!
Also, I don't think that those over 60 should have to wait for a ticket when they already have their bus pass. It's a complete waste of time. I was on a bus once where an elderly lady got on the bus and was waiting for a ticket - and she put her hand towards the machine to get one. The driver pushed her arm away with a force, and told her to sit down as she didn't need one.
I'm not talking here about every single bus driver, but some can be really quite rude. Yes, I know traffic can be the cause of this, but the passenger getting on the bus isn't the reason for the bad traffic are they? Why should the Driver be unhappy with them?”
by Rob, Bristol
Sunday, August 08 2010, 6:03PM
“Scott, the reason that most drivers wave and smile at each other on the road is the same reason that you see lorry drivers, taxi drivers etc doing the same thing. Add to that, they are work collegues as well.
If passengers actually helped the driver by being ready with the correct fare, pass etc, not badgering the driver and holding up the bus when its a couple of minutes late (something i witnessed as a passenger on a 36 no less than 5 times from St Annes to the centre.)”
by Shaun C, Taunton
Sunday, August 08 2010, 4:43PM
“Joe, Margaret Thatcher has not been in power since November 1990 - almost 20 years ago. John Major only lasted 1 election. Since then, Tony Blair won 3 general elections. I believe the Labour party has had more than ample time to put their stamp upon Britain. The problems that Britain faces today belong to the Labour Party. Eventually, their socialist policies drag us to the edge of the abyss and harsh measures are required to bring us back.
The state of Bristol¿s busses is just a symptom of broader problems. Many companies ¿ including transportation ¿ were privatised due to lack of funding from the government. Right now the UK owes over £900 billion. By 2011, the government estimates the debt will be about £1.1 trillion. The sorry state of our services is due to a cash strapped government living beyond its means.
Socialists never understand that sooner or later the accounts must be paid. To see examples of this all you have to do is look at the ¿PIIGS¿ ¿ Portugal, Italy, Ireland, Greece and Spain ¿ all have socialist governments and all are in dire straits.
But, you go right on blaming Margaret Thatcher if it makes you feel better. You can always ride your bicycle.”