Stagecoach undertakes £200k fast ferry trial in Torbay

Stagecoach is to trial a new fast ferry service between Brixham and Torquay for four weeks – a one hundred and thirty-eight seat catamaran will link the two Torbay ports from Friday 29 August to Monday 29 September inclusive to test the potential market for a permanent link. The £200k trial, arranged in conjunction with Torbay Council, will provide up to fifteen crossings in each direction per day, with a journey time of fifteen minutes. Fares for the new ferry service will be four pounds single and six pounds return, with discounts for children and senior citizens – Stagecoach Devon Dayrider bus ticket holders will be able to use the ferry service for a supplement of two pounds. Stagecoach is chartering a thirty-two metre catamaran from Red Funnel Ferries, which normally operates between Southampton and West Cowes.

South West region to advise on local transport spending

The South West Regional Assembly (until such time as it is abolished by the Government with many responsibilities been transferred to the South West Regional Development Agency) will advise the Department of Transport on local transport settlement allocations as part of the second round of the Regional Funding Allocation process. Local authority integrated transport and maintenance block funding will be included in the Regional Funding Allocation from 2011/12, alongside the existing funding streams for major schemes on the Highways Agency regional networks and for major schemes proposed by local authorities. The South West Regional Assembly will advise on how funding should be divided between the different expenditure headings – they will also propose how monies should be distributed between the fifteen transport authorities (county and unitary councils) within the South West region.

Passenger Focus objects to reduction of ticket office opening hours at twenty South West railway stations

Passenger Focus has formally objected to the Department for Transport to proposals made by South West Trains to reduce ticket office opening hours at twenty railway stations in South West England (Axminster, Branksome, Christchurch, Crewkerne, Dorchester South, Feniton, Gillingham, Hamworthy, Honiton, Parkstone, Pokesdown, Poole, Salisbury, Sherborne, Templecombe, Tisbury, Wareham, Weymouth, Wool and Yeovil Junction). Passenger Focus states that it is very concerned that the proposed reductions in opening hours will mean some customers paying more for off-peak travel than necessary.

CrossCountry tops 90% punctuality

Performance at CrossCountry exceeded ninety per cent in the first four week periods of 2008/09 (1 April to 19 July), a significant improvement – the average PPM (Public Performance Measure) for the period was 91.2%, compared with 86.3% in the same sixteen weeks last year.

National Rail Enquiry Service telephone calls fall again

Calls to the National Rail Enquiry telephone service (NRES) fell by nearly twenty per cent to twenty-one million in 2007/8 – ninety million telephone calls were been made to this information facility in 2001. Visits to the online journey planner, operated by NRES, have increased from forty-three million in 2004/05 to eighty-two million three years later.

People,

It has been announced that Tom Stables, the Commercial Director of First Great Western, is to leave the train operating company, in order to take up a new appointment with FirstGroup America.

And finally,

First Somerset and Avon recently undertook a public consultation into revisions to local bus services in the Yate area – one of the proposals was to reduce the number of buses between South Yate and Yate Shopping Centre from four buses per hour on Monday to Saturday daytime to just two buses per hour. Following objections from both customers and stakeholders, First Somerset and Avon announced there would be three buses per hour between South Yate and Yate Shopping Centre from Monday 4 August – the revised timetable has now been introduced and the promised three buses per hour from Yate Shopping Centre depart at the following times:-

Monday to Friday: 16, 45 and 46 minutes past each hour
Saturday: 16, 46 and 46 minutes past each hour