Councillor calls for a 'Bristol Transport Company'
A NEW transport company for Bristol – like Transport for London – could transform bus and rail services, says city councillor Tim Kent.
The Liberal Democrat executive member for transport will seize the opportunity in a debate this month to spell out the benefits and challenge critics to say why they oppose it.
Mr Kent, right, who last month warned First Bus he would consider effectively taking over bus services if they did not improve, has put down a motion for the next full council meeting on June 19.
It calls on the council's ruling administration to set up a Bristol Transport Company, which already has the public backing of Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg, to introduce integrated bus tickets and, if necessary, impose quality contracts on bus operators to guarantee better services to the public.
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The motion states: "The Department for Transport wants Bristol City Council and its neighbours to strengthen their working relationship to unlock additional devolution of transport powers.
"There is no consensus among our neighbouring authorities for our preferred option of an integrated transport authority."
It goes on to call for:
â More devolution of transport powers, particularly over rail and bus services.
â Substantial investment to meet demand for an "integrated, modern and affordable public transport network".
â A paper on "quality contracts" to be prepared for discussion by the council in September.
â Integrated bus tickets to be introduced by operators to give passengers "greater flexibility" in the services they use.
â A Transport Company for Bristol and the wider region to be set up to allow additional powers and funding to be devolved from central to local government to improve public transport.
If a majority of members agree after a debate, the motion can be passed.
Comments
by KBillies
Monday, June 11 2012, 6:57PM
“DM Fishponds is a troll and an angry curmudgeon
i always thought the Tories were happier than hard lefties, perhaps I am wrong and happy to be corrected.”
by DM_Fishponds
Monday, June 11 2012, 6:14PM
“@Kbillies - "DM Fishponds you take this all too seriously my friend."
No-one takes you seriously, least of all me!”
by KBillies
Monday, June 11 2012, 5:57PM
“DM Fishponds you take this all too seriously my friend.”
by katachua
Monday, June 11 2012, 12:23PM
“@DM_Fishponds
"What is a 'Curmudgeon' anyway?
http://tinyurl.com/3ey7nu"
Thanks, DM. That's exactly how I feel about the world...”
by DM_Fishponds
Monday, June 11 2012, 9:41AM
“@Kbillies – "Lets have a truce my friend. I will you no ill."
I will if you will; on one condition . . .
You must stop posting absurd, inflammatory one-liners about how well any/all of the LibDems are doing, either individually, as Bristol City Council or as a party. In return I will stop posting FACTS about them to balance your biased, inaccurate statements.
Deal?”
by KBillies
Monday, June 11 2012, 8:39AM
“Lets have a truce my friend.
I will you no ill.”
by DM_Fishponds
Monday, June 11 2012, 7:58AM
“What is a 'Curmudgeon' anyway?
http://tinyurl.com/3ey7nu
A curmudgeon's reputation for malevolence is undeserved. They're neither warped nor evil at heart. They don't hate mankind, just mankind's absurdities. They're just as sensitive and soft-hearted as the next guy, but they hide their vulnerability beneath a crust of misanthropy. They ease the pain by turning hurt into humor. They attack maudlinism because it devalues genuine sentiment. Nature, having failed to equip them with a servicable denial mechanism, has endowed them with astute perception and sly wit.
Curmudgeons are mockers and debunkers whose bitterness is a symptom rather than a disease. They can't compromise their standards and can't manage the suspension of disbelief necessary for feigned cheerfulness. Their awareness is a curse.
Perhaps curmudgeons have gotten a bad rap in the same way that the messenger is blamed for the message: They have the temerity to comment on the human condition without apology. They not only refuse to applaud mediocrity, they howl it down with morose glee. Their versions of the truth unsettle us, and we hold it against them, even though they soften it with humor.
JON WINOKUR”
by KBillies
Sunday, June 10 2012, 10:36PM
“DM Fishponds is a troll and an angry curmudgeon..
Tim Kent is an elected representative with a tough brief.
The truth hurts but it is still the truth.”
by DM_Fishponds
Sunday, June 10 2012, 9:47PM
“@Fuzzhead – "Lots of Lib Dem supporters and friends of Tim Kent here, frantically bigging him up, I guess."
In 2006 Tim Kent won his seat in Whitchurch Park with a majority of 177 votes (45.65%).
In 2010 his majority had fallen to 59 votes (39.38%).
In 2011 Helen Holland (Labour) won by 784 votes (51.59%), receiving more than double the votes of the Liberal candidate (Lorraine Horgan) with 24.11% of the votes!
What will happen in 2013 if TK stands for re-election? Elections are more tightly run than The Post's website! I don't think all these red-ratings will be converted into votes for Tim.
My theory is that the red-ratings are being generated by one sad 'apparatchik' with access to multiple PCs or IP addresses!”
by katachua
Sunday, June 10 2012, 9:26PM
“@KBillies
Nice to see teh shill doing something useful for once...”