UK Bus Awards 2009

The following entries from the South West of England have been short-listed for the UK Bus Awards 2009:-

Express Operation of the Year: Stagecoach West (for the 444 service between Gloucester and London)

Independent Operator of the Year: Western Greyhound

Shire Operator of the Year: Transdev Yellow Buses

Innovation Award: Transdev Yellow Buses (‘Carbon Stoppers’)

Winning New Customers Award: University of the West of England and Wessex Connect (Ulink bus services)

ATOC calls for continued rail investment

The Association of Train Operating Companies (ATOC) has called on all the major political parties to commit to continuing investment in the railways, arguing that passenger rail is essential to the future economic success of Great Britain, as business travellers make two hundred and fifty million journeys per year. ATOC wants the Department for Transport (DfT) to offer longer franchises to enable train operating companies to ‘invest and innovate’ – ATOC also wants improvements to the existing rail infrastructure, the electrification of more routes and the opening of new lines in order to avoid a ‘capacity crunch’.

New facilities for cyclists at railway stations

The Department for Transport (DfT) has launched a fourteen million pound package designed to ‘transform’ facilities for cyclists at railway stations. This initiative is designed to improve facilities for cyclists at over three hundred railway stations in England – additional cycle park spaces will be provided at Exeter St Davids, while Salisbury railway station will benefit from a new secure cycle parking compound. South West Trains (SWT) has been named as one of the four flagship ‘Bike ‘n’ Ride’ train operating companies – SWT will introduce a ‘Plusbike’ scheme, which provides an integrated ticket including rail travel and cycle hire.

New rail survey published by DfT

The Department for Transport (DfT) has published a new survey on ‘Public experiences of and attitudes to rail travel’ – the survey found that although fifty-five per cent of all adults had undertaken a rail journey in the preceding twelve months, only seven per cent made a journey by train at least once a week. Respondents to the survey were generally satisfied with the frequency, punctuality and reliability of trains and with the politeness and helpfulness of staff – the people surveyed were, however, highly critical of the cost of fares and the ease of parking at railway stations. Two-thirds of respondents stated that they did not understand the current range of available ticket types.

Wilts and Dorset retains ‘Unilinx’ contract

Wilts and Dorset has retained the Bournemouth University ‘Unilinx’ service contract for a further five years – the operator which gained the contract in 2004 has undertaken to introduce new buses from January 2010.

Ferry firm plans legal action after loss of contract

The Mount Edgcumbe Joint Committee, comprising representatives of Cornwall Council and Plymouth City Council, has withdrawn the offer of a new seven year contract to Sound Cruising to provide the ferry service between Cremyll and Stonehouse, following the threat of legal action from the existing operator –the councils stated that they are able to proceed with the new contract due to legal advice about the procurement process. The existing operator has been asked to continue to provide the service until a new tendering process can be completed – Sound Cruising has claimed that it has already spent forty thousand pounds on refurbishing a ferry for use on the route.

People

Christina Ratcliffe (Stagecoach South West) and Ed Wills (Transdev Yellow Buses) have been short-listed for the Young Manager of the Year award at the UK Bus Awards 2009 – Alan Pratt (First Devon and Cornwall) has been short-listed for the Engineer of the Year award.

And finally,

Samples of paint from the Royal Albert Bridge are been collected by an architectural paint researcher in an attempt to establish its original colour. There are approximately thirty coats of paint on the bridge – the bridge was first painted grey in 1911, but there is apparently no record of the original colour.