Transportinfo.org.uk - today's transport news in the uk, hand picked for you each morning

Friday, 07 February 2020

The Guardian

• £170m boost for buses dismissed as 'drop in the ocean' of cutsLabour dismisses plans for all-electric bus town and on-demand buses as gimmicks

Wales Online

• Everything you need to know about changes to Newport's bus timetableThe changes come into effect this month

Other Regional Press

• Government cash could save the PickMeUp busesOXFORD Bus Company is investigating the possibility of getting government cash to support its app-based PickMeUp service.
• Bus giants Stagecoach to take on 600 apprentices this yearBus and coach firm Stagecoach, which operates services across Derbyshire, is to recruit 600 extra apprentices during 2020.
• Bus lane cameras could be used to fine drivers Motorists who sneak in to bus lanes could soon face automatic fines – as Hertfordshire highways chiefs consider plans for a network of road-side cameras.
• First glimpse of 'Uber-style' on-demand buses for Teesside as fares are revealedPassengers will be able to order a bus on their smartphone, online or over the phone

Coach and Bus Week

• Continuing to ExcelFirst Eastern Counties has relaunched its long-distance Excel route between Norwich and Peterborough, utilising a fleet of the first ADL Enviro400 City-bodied Scanias with diesel drives. James Day reports
• CPT responds to Westminster coach parking space removalFollowing the news that Westminster City Council is to remove a number of parking spaces for coaches following complaints from residents as reported in CBW last week, the CPT’s Keith McNally made the following statement:
• Bus services to be ‘transformed’ as Open Data service goes liveBus passengers across England will now benefit from being able able to plan their journeys down to the minute as the Open Data project to share bus data goes live. Information on timetables will be available from this year, followed by location and fares data during 2021. Operators are required to make available their schedule data available via the TransXchange platform. Information can be found at www.gov.uk/guidance/publish-bus-open-data.

Route One (Bus and Coach)

• Warrington’s Own installs Omnibus driver appWarrington’s Own Buses has installed myDAS from Omnibus to improve communication with its 160 drivers.
• Huw Merriman announced as Chair of Transport Select CommitteeThe Conservative MP has highlighted some ‘specific’ proposals for the bus industry A couple of weeks ago I suggested that Stephen Hammond, the Conservative MP for Wimbledon, would make a great Chair of the Transport Select Committee. Well, he didn’t even apply for the job. Instead, it’s gone to Huw Merriman, the Conservative MP for Bexhill and Battle since 2015.
• ‘Bringing the coach industry into the modern day’In the age of data driven technology, the coach industry has had a hard time finding its feet with its traditional toolkits and ways of working, and more importantly, may have struggled to identify potential opportunities for coaches.
• Bus Open Data service launches with legal mandate for sharingOperators required to provide timetable data by December and other aspects during 2021 DfT has formally launched its flagship Bus Open Data project, which it says will “digitally transform the delivery of bus passenger information across England.”
• Plymouth Citybus granted IIP platinum accreditationAward-winning operator receives top accolade for its efforts at putting people first
• Stagecoach SE adds two members to senior teamStagecoach South East (SE) has added Mark Wallis as Engineering Director and Grahame Patterson as Fleet Engineer to its senior team.
• Young coach and bus drivers: A fresh approach?How to attract young people as coach and bus drivers has long been a thorny topic.
• Tap-on, tap-off hits one million usesAfter introduction on Brighton and Hove Buses and Metrobus in September 2019, tap-on, tap-off contactless has hit one million transactions.