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Friday, 14 February 2020

The Economist

• The paradox of Britain’s busesEverybody wants buses. They just don’t want to use them

Coach and Bus Week

• DfT announces funding for first electric bus townDetails of how a £170m is to be spent also include funding for ‘Superbus networks,’ demand-responsive service trials and the support and restoration of existing networks
• Government commits £5bn to bus and cycling investmentThe funding, which will be delivered over five years, promises higher frequency services, lower and simpler fares, new priority schemes and at least 4,000 zero emission buses
• Harrogate’s free Sunday buses power onHarrogate’s Sunday economy has seen a significant boost as customer numbers on its free Sunday buses continue to rise, The Harrogate Bus Company has announced. The services are now set to continue thanks to local businesses.
• Scotland’s Bus industry sets out Vision for 2030Bus companies across Scotland are getting together to set out a vision for buses for 2030, highlighting the importance of buses in tackling the climate emergency, in a project led by Transform Scotland (TS), the national body for sustainable transport.
• Bus use in North East grows for first time in a decadeTyne and Wear growth highest in Northern England, only surpassed nationally by areas with successful bus partnerships
• Gender diversity conference aims to get more women on the busesNorth East has hosted a ‘Women in Bus’ conference at Newcastle’s Vermont Hotel as part of the group’s Women in Bus initiative to increase gender diversity in the bus roles. 80% of the conference attendees were female, with nearly 50 representatives from Go-Ahead’s bus operations across the UK, including Sophie Moorby who is the chair of the national network as it is based in the North East where she works as Operations Manager for Go North East’s Gateshead Riverside depot.
• First silent Solaris buses for Beethoven’s BonnPolish manufacturer Solaris has won a tender for the delivery of three articulated electric buses for SWB in Bonn. It will be the first time the manufacturer has supplied SWB. The buses will be Urbino 18 electrics featuring the new generation of Solaris High Energy+ batteries, and are expected to hit the streets of Bonn in 2020.

Route One (Bus and Coach)

• The decade of the bus starts by tackling congestionCongestion is eclipsing the benefits of buses – and the National Bus Strategy needs to tackle it
• Leeds CAZ: £528,000 paid for coach and bus upgradesLeeds City Council (LCC) has so far paid approximately £528,000 to nine non-scheduled coach and bus operators to help them upgrade 33 vehicles in preparation for the city’s Clean Air Zone (CAZ)
• The decade of the bus starts by tackling congestionCongestion is eclipsing the benefits of buses – and the National Bus Strategy needs to tackle it Last week I was delighted to make my first appearance at the UK Bus Summit.
• Enhanced bus partnership plans in Hertfordshire are approvedServices and infrastructure will be improved through deal, which builds on existing work
• UK Bus Summit 2020: A new ‘golden age’ for bus?Focus was on investment, green growth and a long-term strategy for the industry at this year’s UK Bus Summit.
• Tees Valley Flex minibus DRT pilot launchesThe demand-responsive Tees Valley Flex minibus pilot launched last week in Hartlepool. It is operated by Stagecoach using nine low-floor Mercedes-Benz Sprinters, including seven new examples with EVM Cityline conversions.
• Stagecoach to double apprenticeships in 2020To mark National Apprenticeship Week (3-7 February), Stagecoach has pledged to recruit 600 extra apprentices in 2020 with an aim to have 1,200 apprentices employed by the end of the year.