REF0034

Written evidence submitted by the Association of Transport Co-ordinating Officers

Introduction

1. ATCO is the association for professionals in passenger transport working in local authorities in England, Scotland and Wales, predominantly outside London. Their responsibilities span a wide range of activities including:

• oversight of bus and train services available to the general public
• recommending to their councils where subsidy is necessary to sustain services that are considered socially necessary
• proposing investment in public transport facilities from bus stops to major development schemes for bus stations or interchanges and, increasingly, applications of information and communications technology (ICT) to the provision of information and control of services
• liaising with highways department colleagues and Highways England on schemes to improve the performance of bus services, including bus priorities, physical works to facilitate bus movements and applications of ICT to traffic signal control and monitoring of traffic flows to enable intervention to reduce delays from congestion, weather conditions, accidents and other incidents
• through liaison with education department colleagues and educational institutions arranging transport to schools and colleges both for pupils entitled to free school transport and for non-entitled pupils using public bus and train services
• in conjunction with education and social service department colleagues arranging appropriate transport to schools and colleges for pupils with special educational needs
• in conjunction with education and social service department colleagues arranging appropriate transport for adults receiving social care
• in some cases, managing their Council’s own passenger transport fleet, sometimes other council vehicles also.

2. ATCO has a membership of around 360.  Its members deal with all land public transport modes, from car-sharing through taxis, bus and coach transport in all its forms to rail services in many cases. Members whose areas include ports and airports may also be involved with ferry services, land transport in conjunction with sea and air services and, in a few cases, internal air services.
3. Organisational reporting lines vary from Council to Council so that ATCO members may be working in a variety of directorates including central services, planning and environment, personal services and more.
4. […]

NOTE: This response represents the consensus view of officers in different councils and their professional associates and must not be taken as representing a consensus on behalf of the employing authorities.

Summary

5. The big prize for society will come with significant mode shift from private car to active travel and public transport (each journey on which is usually accompanied by at least two walking stages). Such improvements will enable improved local air quality and achievement of the goal of net-zero carbon by 2050. High Quality Public Transport with other shared mobility services has a major part to play in persuading travellers to choose public transport rather than cars, when possible, for a greener, cleaner choice for a sustainable future.
6. ATCO believe that the following actions are necessary:

• Government must produce its National Bus Strategy (NBS) as soon as possible.  This will necessarily cover the transition from pandemic conditions to a “new normal” and should include a 5-year funding plan corresponding to those for National Rail and Highways England.
• Until the NBS is completed Government should continue to provide financial support to the bus and coach sector as it has done with CBSSG, but simplifying the process so that it includes the support currently provided by local authorities through maintaining contract payments and concessionary travel support at pre-Covid-19 levels
• All local highway authorities should produce network management plans as required by the Traffic Management Act 2004 giving the highest priorities to active travel and public transport services.
• Both national and local government must work together with the bus and coach sector to deliver clean air and decarbonisation targets, take development planning decisions that ensure that adequate mobility can be provided through active travel and public transport and do not rely on car dependency.

Effect of the Pandemic on Travel

7. The Committee will have the benefit of up-to-date statistics, from a low of patronage less than 20% compared with 2019, bus had recovered by mid-September to between 50% and 60% outside London. National Rail passenger use is recovering more slowly and appears now to be above 30% of pre-COVID level[1].
8. Perhaps a cause for concern, car use is around 90% of 2019 levels on weekdays, but over 100% has been reported in recent weekends. Road freight vehicle traffic is now slightly more than in 2019, rail freight is 85-90%.
9. Early in the pandemic the Government advised against use of public transport in unnecessarily strong terms despite requiring a level of service for key workers to continue way above the reduced demand.
10. Social distancing of 2 metres initially severely impacted capacity, for both buses and trains, to less than 20% of seats. In July, having taken note of representations from a number of concerned organisations including ATCO, the Government agreed to a risk-based approach enabling capacity on buses to be raised to almost 50%, broadly corresponding to using every seat alongside a window and maintaining social distancing of one metre upwards.
11. All passengers are now required to use face coverings with the exception of younger children and those whose medical conditions make this undesirable.
12. Unfortunately, the messaging from Government about public transport use created fear that using buses and trains may be dangerous.  Bus and train operators adopted deep cleaning regimes which, together with appropriate social distancing, meant that public transport was not, and is not, a significant setting for infection.  This was borne out in international comparisons[2].  A recent report from the Rail Safety and Standards Board based on modelling and an extensive literature review confirms that the risk of infection from the Covid-19 virus is extremely low[3].
13. Operators were initially asked to restrict use of public transport to key workers. Those excluded needed to find other means of travel.  As a result, discretionary use of public transport has collapsed. Transport Focus surveys suggest this could be long lasting[4], particularly as reduced peak period traffic levels and congestion make car use more attractive.
14. The Government’s stark messaging has resulted in a significant proportion of the public now fear that public transport is an unsafe environment[5]. Operators made considerable efforts to reassure passengers and prospective passengers that, for example, “We’re Safe, Clean and Ready to Go”[6]. Despite these efforts almost 50% of those surveyed by Transport Focus as unwilling to use public transport considered it unsafe or something to avoid.
15. In early July, Government reversed its advice on using public transport as restrictions on the retail and hospitality sectors began to be progressively released.  However, the general pandemic advice remains to work from home if possible. When using public transport people are now required to wear face coverings, and advised to travel at off peak times, keep interchange to a minimum and book tickets and seats online. Operators are advised to provide for social distancing in vehicles and at stations and stops.
16. Risk analysis shows that the danger of airborne transmission for people facing in the same direction and also those sitting side by side is lower than for people facing each other which appears to have been the basis of early modelling by the scientists in the UK and internationally. For typical British buses a risk-based approach allows the majority of window seats to be used so that the useable capacity could be increased from below 20% to almost 50%.

Effect of the pandemic on Bus and Coach Operators and Active Travel

17. The bus and coach sector suffered dramatic reductions in patronage due to the Covid-19 pandemic.  Government funding has been necessary to sustain formerly profitable local bus services due to reduced demand and social distancing cutting capacity. It is doubtful if any bus route in the UK does not now depend on public support. As recovery of commercial levels of use will not happen quickly, if ever, the Government’s promised National Bus Strategy must deal with the transition from pandemic to maximising the contribution of buses and coaches in decarbonisation and clean air programmes.
18. Many transport businesses have taken advantage of Government measures such as Job Retention Scheme furloughs and business rates relief.  In addition, somewhat questionably in terms of the applicable regulations, local authorities were asked by Government to maintain concessionary travel and contracted (“socially necessary”) service payments at pre-pandemic levels. Some managers have been able to work from home at least for part of each week.  The Government has required many services to be maintained for key workers in exchange for COVID-19 Bus Services Support Grant (CBSSG).
19. Some operators have been able to delicense vehicles, particularly coaches, obtaining a rebate on fees paid to offset loss of income.
20. Government relaxed the rules for the introduction of Traffic Regulation Orders to permit pavement widening to permit social distancing and to facilitate “pop-up” cycle lanes.  This encouraged a rapid increase in walking and cycling apparently chosen to avoid use of public transport.  However, as car traffic increased, “temporary” measures to encourage active travel caused difficulty for buses, coaches, goods and servicing vehicles as junctions became congested because of reduced highway capacity.
21. Many marginal bus services, particularly those in rural areas often provided by smaller operators, have been drastically reduced or ceased operation. Some smaller, often family run, coach companies not eligible for CBSSG, ceased trading, their futures being in question in any event because their vehicles did not meet accessibility requirements (PSVAR) for public services. 
22. The Department for Education made additional funding for school transport services less than two weeks before the return of pupils to school in England and schools, colleges, local authorities and operators are to be congratulated that this return was implemented with remarkably few minor problems when normally an exercise of this magnitude occupies the entire summer holiday period.
23. Both local authorities and bus operators have encountered difficulties with interpreting Government guidance (and in some cases even intentions) on how financial assistance reaches the operators. Local authorities are maintaining payments at February 2020, or even financial year 2018/19 levels, for both contracted services (many operating at reduced levels for much of the period) and concessionary travel payments (contravening the “no better, no worse” principle on which reimbursement regulations are based).
24. Confusion arises because operators support is paid through Bus Service Operators Grant, paid directly to them or through local authorities, local authority contract, concessionary travel payments at “pre-pandemic” levels, Coronavirus Bus Services Support Grant (CBSSG) and now DfE school transport support also paid through local authorities.
25. As it now seems likely that funding introduced to support operations during the pandemic will necessarily be extended at least until March 2021, to restore a direct relationship between the funds required and their use, ATCO suggests that the Government might consolidate all payments into a single “Emergency Bus Funding Grant” taking into account BSOG, CBSSG local authority support for public transport and concessionary travel which comes from Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government budgets, and DfE education  transport support.  There are enough operational and capacity issues to resolve at local level without the distraction of which pot funds what. The consolidated grant would be distributed by local authorities on behalf of the Government.

Public Transport Use after the Pandemic

26. Permanent changes to the pattern of demand for all forms of passenger transport look inevitable because of increased working from home and greater use of internet shopping, particularly for food and essentials. In commuter areas a reduction in peak demand may lead to better utilisation of resources, although there is also a risk that workers able to choose their days of working remotely adopt a Tuesday-to-Thursday working week concentrating peak travel on just three days instead of five.
27. Given the unique circumstances of the pandemic and the changes it has brought in perceived demand for travel, national and local administrations might adopt a scenario approach when determining future support levels.  For example, a fast recovery hypothesis might predict a return to 2019 levels in 2-3 years’ time at which point commercial growth might resume for some bus operators. A pessimistic view might be that travel never returns to 2019 levels and intervention will be necessary to achieve committed decarbonisation and air quality targets. Sources in the bus industry suggest that, even with greater flexibility in the registration system, it will take years rather than months to recover to a point where external revenue support can be ended without severe service withdrawals.
28. Service registration requirements have been relaxed during the pandemic so that the provision of services is more responsive to changing circumstances. Operators and local authorities have worked closely together to match services to essential travel demands. The temporary suspension of various regulatory controls has shown how delivery of bus services could be improved.  For example, the ability to make substantial changes to routes and timetables at short notice with the support of local authorities has been helpful. Operators co-operating rather than competing has benefits for users, such as one operator accepting the return tickets of another where sections of routes are shared.  Loosening of regulation provides advantages to users at no cost to operators and is not anti-competitive in practice. 
29. The pandemic has provided an opportunity to re-think how, when and where bus services are provided.  Given the expected changes in demand, services will need to be re-timed, routes to be changed and fares simplified.  It is clear that many pre-pandemic services had limited appeal, particularly for people with wider travel options.  However, pre-pandemic there were many examples throughout the UK of successful bus services, usually delivered by the bus operators working in partnership with the relevant authorities.  The Bus Services Act 2017 provides a toolkit for partnerships to achieve such results.
30. Changes could take a number of forms such as different services at different times of day or with different destinations, fare reforms to attract part time workers, more space within vehicles (perhaps with a ban on standing except on designated services), demand responsive services, better integration with train services and improved walking and cycling routes to bus stops and interchanges. All of these would need to be supported with agile information systems making effective use of Bus Open Data and real-time traffic monitoring
31. Re-shaping services alone will not be sufficient to attract a large-scale shift from car use. Measures need to be in place that manage car movements better.  Fiscal measures are necessary including workplace parking levies and road user charging in some form.  With such measures in place, public transport use will be more appealing, and people and communities will benefit from less car use, in particular from better air quality.  During the initial responses to the pandemic there were low volumes of traffic and virtually no congestion, a huge benefit to bus operations, to local authorities seeking to improve air quality and especially to surrounding communities. The Traffic Management Act 2004 could be used to facilitate priority for Active Travel, recognizing that bus journeys usually start and end with a walk segment and should be regarded as a facilitator of Active Travel both in this respect and their more efficient use of scarce road space.
32. The bus industry is able to respond to changing circumstances relatively quickly and is rapidly adopting information technology to inform passengers better and to introduce new methods of operational control. However, improvements to services, even innovative flexibly routed services, are dependent on the extent to which highway authorities recognize that bus priority measures are vital. Some restrictions on car use are inevitable throughout urban areas.  Lack of direction from central Government has perpetuated the difficulties buses experience leading to late running and slower journeys.  The UK Government must fulfil its promise to produce a National Bus Strategy as soon as practicable, thus delivering a “better deal for bus users”[7].

Central and Local Government Transport Priorities, Finance and Funding

33. Economic growth, already forecast to decline before the pandemic, will probably fall further before the economy attempts to recover. This will weaken the economic case for investment in enhancements, although investment creating jobs and benefits in health and other sectors should be a part of recovery and encouraged by Government.
34. It remains possible that demand will grow more rapidly than long-term relationships suggest, as it did in the years following the 2008 recession. A careful monitoring of trends in patronage and the factors underlying these trends, including policies on fares and subsidies, will help to provide a better understanding of how demand for travel will evolve.
35. Buses are the most adaptable form of public transport.  Services of consistently high quality can attract patronage from cars.  A win-win equilibrium can be established with sympathetic traffic and parking management to reduce congestion.  For example, over several decades York, amongst other historic cities and towns, has demonstrated how strict central area parking controls, pedestrianisation and bus priorities on the main approaches to the city centre, with park and ride services overlaid on the local bus network can deliver higher bus patronage, less congestion and improved air quality.
36. Emergency funding has been vital to maintain services during the pandemic.  Many bus services were already marginal, generating limited surpluses or none at all. Whilst local authorities can and do support some services as socially necessary their number has declined with successive spending cuts over the period of austerity from 2010.
37. Reduced demand will result in marginal services becoming liabilities that cannot be sustained, particularly if additional buses are needed to maintain frequencies for core services with social distancing in place. It is unlikely that there will be many, if any, new entrants to the market given the high start-up costs and financial risks in a nervous market.
38. The bus and coach sector and Government alike must accept that public support, and therefore participation, in the industry is likely to be necessary for several years. Partnership at local level between authorities, operators and key stakeholder groups is essential to make efficient and effective use of the resources available. The National Bus Strategy should be based on five-year funding settlements (as for rail and Highways England).
39. The structuring of support packages should reward both patronage growth and innovation. Investment in facilities such as back offices to support between increased use of information and communication technologies might be shared authorities on a regional basis.

Devolution

40. It is completely appropriate that bus and coach operations and levels of rail and other publicly supported transport services are matters for the devolved administrations (including London) to consider.
41. An option that could be considered is that strategic regional (defined by Combined Authority or Local Economic Partnership areas) transport advisory groups consisting of representatives from local authorities, LEPs, national transport agencies, public transport operators and key stakeholders including businesses and goods vehicle operators) should be given an influential role overseeing the planning and allocation of funds to highway and passenger transport networks in the area. That way stakeholders can be beneficially involved in shaping transport solutions that can be more quickly implemented as arguments that might have impeded their adoption can be resolved before projects are implemented.

Resilience

42. There is clearly an increasing need for physical resilience against climate change and other scenarios (such as pandemics).
43. Arguably, even though the coronavirus pandemic was unprecedented in Europe more notice should have been taken of the SARS (2003) and MERS (2012) experiences in Asia and Arabia in European responses. Contingency plans should be developed nationally that can be implemented quickly and flexibly for a number of scenarios. No plan will ever fit the current circumstances perfectly but if a number of scenarios have been tested the techniques learnt should be adaptable.

Innovation and Technological Reform

44. Technologies for journey planning, passenger information, seat reservations, contactless and mobile ticketing are mature. Rail, bus and coach operators have made good use of them as appropriate to reduce human contact and ease travel in the difficult conditions of the pandemic.  Highly effective cleansing and disinfecting technologies novel to the public transport industries are now in general use. 
45. In common with many other organisations, transport authorities and operators have embraced web teleconferencing not only to replace physical meetings but also, within the UK and internationally, have used webinars to share knowledge and experience.  This has encompassed both measures combat Covid-19 and the use of new technology.
46. More mundane advances using recently developed technology include the ability to display on vehicle displays and passenger information screens both internally and externally how busy a bus or train is, particularly useful to ensure social distancing during the pandemic but also, in the longer term, to allow disabled people, or simply those that don’t like crowding, to avoid busy services.
47. All of the above innovations, together with advances in power train technologies and with new forms of service such as MaaS will enable the transport industries to contribute to achieving net-zero carbon by 2050 or earlier. All can be adopted as part of Quality Bus Service packages.
48. Hitherto, despite many experiments or demonstrations with demand responsive services dating back to the 1970s, the costs incurred of acquiring and running back offices (to allocate passengers to vehicles and to communicate pick up points and routings to drivers) in addition to the capital and running costs of the vehicles have often meant that the services were not sustainable either commercially or for subsidising authorities.
49. During the pandemic a number of services have appeared across the world, including one in the UK, that show promise first by spreading the overhead costs of the powerful back offices over other functions including journey planning, real time information, flexible routing to avoid congestion and more.  As suggested earlier such back offices might be shared on a regional basis. Delivering high levels of shared mobility will be part of the justification for such investment.

Decarbonisation

50. The diesel and hybrid buses in use in urban areas are already substantially cleaner that either petrol and diesel cars.  An increasing number of electric buses are in use, but until electricity generation is guaranteed to be low carbon there are questions as to clean they actually are.
51. One of the major transport groups is actually rolling out buses with a roof mounted air cleaner that emits air that is purer than the air taken in by the engine.  Large scale trials of hydrogen buses are encouraging. Autonomous buses are in service in depots and on private roads.

In a nutshell

52. The big prize for society will come with significant mode shift from private car to active travel and public transport (each journey on which is usually accompanied by at least two walking stages). Such improvements will enable improved local air quality. High Quality Bus Services with other shared mobility services have a major part to play in persuading travellers to choose public transport rather than cars, when possible, for a greener, cleaner choice for a sustainable future.

September 2020