Issue - meetings

Cabinet is asked to note that the Service Director for Transport and Engineering has used delegated authority to indicate to the Department for Transport (DfT) that the Council intends to enter into a statutory Enhanced Partnership (EP) with the local bus service operators from 1 April 2022. Local Transport Authorities and bus operators were asked to commit to forming an EP by 30 June 2021 with the EP being operational from 1 April 2022.

This report also seeks Cabinet approval to formally enter into the EP with the BCP local bus service operators under the Bus Services Act 2017 and in line with the National Bus Strategy for England.

Failure to form an EP will result in no new sources of bus funding from the government’s £3bn budget and cessation of the COVID-19 Bus Service Support Grant (CBSSG).

Robust and ambitious Bus Service Improvement Plans are required by 31 October 2021 setting out a roadmap to better services for passengers and communities, fully informed by local needs.

RESOLVED that: - 

(a)          Cabinet supports the formation of an Enhanced Partnership with the bus operators as a replacement to the existing voluntary Quality Bus Partnership.

(b)         Cabinet delegates authority to the Service Director for Transport and Engineering in consultation with the Portfolio Holder for Transport and Sustainability to negotiate, seek stakeholder views and then publish a Bus Service Improvement Plan (BSIP) on behalf of the Council by the end of October 2021 in line with the requirements of the National Bus Strategy for England.

Voting: Unanimous

Portfolio Holder: Transport and Sustainability

Reason

The recently published National Bus Strategy for England sets out an ambition for every local transport authority and bus operator in England to be in a statutory Enhanced Partnership or a franchising arrangement (entering into an EP does not preclude franchising in the future, however, achieving franchising is lengthy and complex with significant financial risk).

Improving bus services to attract more passengers is a joint aim of the bus operators and the Local Transport Authority (LTA).

An Enhanced Partnership will build on the good work undertaken through the voluntary Quality Bus Partnership over the last two decades.

Not entering into an Enhanced Partnership will result in a significant financial funding loss for the council and for the bus operators.

The Portfolio Holder for Transport and Sustainability presented a report, a copy of which had been circulated to each Member and a copy of which appears as Appendix 'D' to these Minutes in the Minute Book.

Cabinet was requested to note that the Service Director for Transport and Engineering has used delegated authority to indicate to the Department for Transport (DfT) that the Council intends to enter into a statutory Enhanced Partnership (EP) with the local bus service operators from 1 April 2022. In relation to this Cabinet was informed that Local Transport Authorities and bus operators were asked to commit to forming an EP by 30 June 2021 with the EP being operational from 1 April 2022.

In addition Cabinet was advised that the report also sought Cabinet approval to formally enter into the EP with the BCP local bus service operators under the Bus Services Act 2017 and in line with the National Bus Strategy for England, and that failure to form an EP will result in no new sources of bus funding from the government’s £3bn budget and cessation of the COVID-19 Bus Service Support Grant (CBSSG).

Further to this Cabinet was informed that robust and ambitious Bus Service Improvement Plans are required by 31 October 2021 setting out a roadmap to better services for passengers and communities, fully informed by local needs.

The Chairman of the Overview and Scrutiny Board addressed the Cabinet advising that at their recent meeting the Board had resolved to make the following recommendation to the Cabinet.

The Overview and Scrutiny Board recommends that Cabinet consider the additional wording to recommendation (b) to read as follows:

(b)            Cabinet delegates authority to the Service Director for Transport and Engineering in consultation with the Portfolio Holder for Transport and Sustainability to negotiate, seek stakeholder views and then publish a Bus Service Improvement Plan (BSIP) to include a balanced review of the benefits of moving to a Franchising model within the next 5 years, with especial regard to the Dorset Metro concept, multimodal integration, and the development of Mobility as a service (MAAS) on behalf of the Council by the end of October 2021 in line with the requirements of the National Bus Strategy for England.

Plus, the addition of a third recommendation, to read as follows:

(c)           “that the evolving Bus Service Improvement Plan, including longer term ambitions, comes back to Cabinet for approval, especially with a view to bidding via the Western Gateway for funding of wider public transport ambitions.”

Councillor Hadley addressed the Cabinet advising that he had proposed the above recommendations at the Overview and Scrutiny Board, and further to this expressed concern with regards to the ambition of the strategy and stressed the importance that the enhanced partnership should be a balanced vision and that the users should be prioritised against the providers.

The Portfolio Holder thanked the Overview and Scrutiny Board and Councillor Hadley for their comments and recommendation but advised that due to the time constraints  ...  view the full minutes text for item 44

To consider the following Transport and Sustainability related reports scheduled for Cabinet consideration on 1 September 2021:

•   Bus Operator Enhanced Partnership (National Bus Strategy)

The O&S Board is asked to scrutinise and comment on the report and if required make recommendations or observations as appropriate.

The Cabinet report for this item is included with the agenda for consideration by the Overview and Scrutiny Board.

The Sustainable Transport Policy Manager presented a report, a copy of which had been circulated to each Member and a copy of which appears as Appendix 'A' to these Minutes in the Minute Book.

Officers responded to comments and requests for clarification, details included:

• Under this proposal, buses would continue to be operated as commercial enterprises, with the odd exception where some routes were subsidised by the Council.
• The conurbation was lucky enough to be served by two good bus operators who had both invested in the quality of their vehicles, many of which provided services such as wi-fi, phone charging points and contactless payments.
• Go South Coast was considering the introduction of arrangements that would be similar to that of TfL’s Oyster system.
• Routes were introduced by operators and were regularly reviewed. It should be noted that the council maintained a dialogue with operators to ensure that areas were being served and that the council did have the option to subsidise less profitable routes where appropriate and budget allowed for this to happen – it would be possible to bid for additional funding from the government going forwards.
• Baseline mapping was being undertaken at present to establish gaps in the bus network and inform future bidding opportunities. The data from this exercise would be used to assess the need in the area.
• Bearing in mind the tight timescale that had been set by the Government, the option of franchising was not feasible to pursue at this stage, hence the proposal to pursue the option of an Enhanced Partnership (EP).
• The move to franchising of services would present considerable risk financially and in terms of passenger expectations, and reputational risk to the council. Additionally, the Council did not currently have the capacity to introduce franchising at this time.
• In selecting the proposed approach, officers had been pragmatic and franchising does still remain an option for the future.
• There were some issues between the main operators in the area and taking the EP option was expected to remedy this.
• The EP would include all bus operators in the area, not just the main two, with the exception of the open-top tour buses.
• Officers had utilised information that had been gathered from both users and non-users of public transport to establish the priorities of both.
• The importance of integrating transportation systems was recognised and officers were focussed on the ‘first and last mile’ of commuters’ journeys, particularly in regard to cycle access, and were working with Beryl Bikes to explore options.
• There was no BSIP document to share at present as it was still being drafted and would be considered as a ‘high-level’ plan. Following the publication of this, detailed solutions would follow with proposals due to be considered by Cabinet in February 2022.
• There would be an opportunity for the Council to bid for funding for a young person’s travel scheme.
• It was recognised that there were gaps within the existing network, particularly within the Christchurch area and it was hoped  ...  view the full minutes text for item 68