Issue - meetings

Stagecoach East representative invited to respond to resident's questions regarding bus stops and services in response to issues raised at South Area Committee 14 December 2015.

The Committee received a report from Andy Campbell (Managing Director, Stagecoach East) in response to issues raised at South Area Committee 14 December 2015 regarding bus stops and services. Mr Campbell was in attendance tonight to listen then respond to questions from SAC Members and the public.

The Committee made the following comments in response to the report:

       i.          Purchasing tickets on buses turned drivers into conductors and caused congestion/delays.

     ii.          There was a general issue of vehicles running engines when stationery which caused pollution.

   iii.          Councillors continued to receive reports of unprofessional language from stagecoach staff towards visually impaired people who inadvertently flagged down the wrong bus. Guide dogs were occasionally refused admittance too, but this was more of an issue with taxis.

Mr Campbell said the following in response to questions from SAC Members and the public:

       i.          Contactless/swipe card were being trialled for 2 years. 35% of weekly tickets were purchased on-line. Tickets purchase through mobiles were also being trialled.

     ii.          A majority of buses were set up to switch off after 5 minutes to avoid running engines when stationary and so cause pollution. A bigger cause of pollution was congestion which obstructed buses trying to get from the city centre to city outskirts. Traffic lights and cycle lanes also hindered movement.

   iii.          Drivers were required to wear uniforms and were disciplined if they did not.

   iv.          Stagecoach worked with the City Council to produce information such as guides for Ambassadors and tourists. Stagecoach staff were also happy to give information upon request.

    v.          Buses were required to list final destinations, so it would not be possible to add the outside pool to the Citi 3 route description as it was not the final destination (albeit very close).

   vi.          New buses cost £150,000. As such Stagecoach would order large ones to get maximum return on investment. Mr Campbell acknowledged that buses were only likely to be full morning and evening.

 vii.          90% of staff did a good job, but there were some occasions when drivers did not give visually impaired people the service they deserved. Passengers were asked to report unprofessional drivers to Mr Campbell.

viii.          The busway was a safe route to travel on and fewer accidents occurred on it than others eg A14. The incident on the busway was being investigated at the time of SAC 29 February 2016. The track and infrastructure was not at fault, the driver had been dismissed. The driver had the right of 2 further appeals, Mr Campbell being the second level.

   ix.          Temporary stops could be added where required. It was the responsibility of the County Council to request stops be added to new developments.

    x.          Changes were made to the Citi 3 route due to the 20 mph limit. This required a review of the service frequency and route. Stagecoach looked at what was practicable then amended routes to mitigate issues such as delays due to school parking.

   xi.          Leeds University looked at the behaviour of buses running in convoy. If a bus ran behind schedule, others would catch it up when stopping for passengers. The Control Room monitored progress and reallocated routes. A bus had to complete its route before being reallocated.

 xii.          The Citi 17 serviced the Beehive Centre on a 2 hourly basis. It used to do so on an hourly basis before the City Council subsidy was cut. The Citi 17 service was not covering its costs so would be reviewed in future as required by Central Government.

xiii.          Floating bus stops were impractical and worsened the situation on Hills Road.

xiv.          The £1 parking fee and Park&Ride sites led to a reduction in visitors due to the complicated payment process.

xv.          Stagecoach would now have to pay departure charges to the County Council, having been told 2 years ago there would be no charge. Services would be less profitable as a result.

xvi.          Stagecoach had suggested paying a fee to the County Council instead of making people pay the £1 parking fee to simplify the process.

xvii.          Out of hours buses (ie early/late) have been tried at different sites but there were not enough passengers to be viable at present. Stagecoach liaised with Addenbrooke’s on a regular basis to adjust services/times.

xviii.          Developers tried to engage with Stagecoach during the planning stage to review bus services that could be provided to new developments as part of the planning process. Stagecoach were willing to work with anyone (eg City Deal, City and County Councils) to help facilitate this. Stagecoach usually found out about schemes once plans were drawn up ie late in the planning process, when it may be difficult to mitigate the impact on services.