Brian Souter takes direct control of South West Trains

Brian Souter, the chief executive of Stagecoach group, will directly oversee the management of South West Trains, following the redundancy of Ian Dobbs, the chief executive of Stagecoach UK Rail – this announcement was made as the RMT trade union decided to ballot staff at the train operating company about possible strike action arising from the decision to reduce the workforce by approximately six hundred and thirty people. South West Trains maintains that the job cuts are necessary as part of the company’s extensive programme to reduce the cost base.

Dorset bus patronage falls

The publication of the Local Transport Plan Two progress report for Dorset has revealed that, despite the introduction of the national ‘free’ concessionary fares scheme, the number of bus passengers in the administrative county fell by three per cent between 2003/4 and 2007/8 – Dorset was the only strategic transport authority in the South West of England to record a fall in the number of bus passengers over the five-year period. The number of passengers travelling on buses in the South West of England rose by nineteen per cent during the five year period (2003/4 to 2007/8) – Bournemouth, Devon, Poole and Wiltshire all recorded bus passenger increases exceeding thirty per cent.

Bus operators oppose European passenger rights legislation

The European Commission is planning to implement proposals to give the same compensation rights to bus and coach customers, as already enjoyed by air and rail passengers – under planned new European legislation, the Commission is proposing that bus and coach passengers would have rights to meals, hotel accommodation and alternative services, if a bus or coach journey was cancelled or not completed. Disabled customers would be entitled to free assistance throughout a bus or coach journey and operators would also be liable if luggage was lost and damaged. The Confederation of Passenger Transport UK, representing bus and coach operators, is strongly opposed to the proposals, although the organisation has conceded that the new rules should apply to international coach services operating between two or more member states.

Swindon to close park-and-ride site?

Swindon Borough Council is proposing to close the Groundwell park-and-ride facility from 31 May 2009, in order to make a financial saving of three hundred and thirty-one thousand pounds for the following twelve months.

Congestion cash for Bristol

Bristol has been awarded a grant of five hundred and thirty-six thousand pounds from the ‘Urban Congestion Performance Fund’, operated by the Department for Transport, to study and address the causes of urban road congestion in the city.

Go-Ahead interim results

The financial results for Go-Ahead Group plc for the six months to 27 December 2008 reveal that operating profit rose by only one-fifth of one per cent to sixty-four million, six hundred thousand pounds – the operating profit of the group’s bus subsidiaries, including Wilts and Dorset, reduced by over two million, three hundred thousand pounds, due to higher fuel costs.

And finally,

It has been revealed that the Isles of Scilly council is currently receiving fifty-one thousand pounds per year to fund ‘free’ concessionary bus travel on the islands – there are currently no registered local bus services on the islands, upon which concessionary bus passes could be used!