Written evidence from Dr Roger Sexton (TIC 001)

1              I am only dealing with your third question, ‘What are the main challenges associated with providing better and more consistent bus and rail services to isolated communities?’

A              Bus Deregulation

2              Buses are the main form of rural public transport.    The biggest  ‘challenge’(I would use the word ‘problem’) is the lack of public control over bus services.   Unlike in the rest of Europe, most British bus services outside London are provided commercially; these services are not planned by public bodies such as a German/Swiss/ Austrian Verkehrsverbund or a Swedish Lanstrafiken.

3              In very rural parts of Britain there may be no commercial bus services, and the Local Authority can then plan the system.  But that situation is rather rare.  Usually in rural areas (eg in North Derbyshire and North Nottinghamshire) there are some commercial registrations which make a planned network impossible.   Bus deregulation also makes integration of rail, bus and ferry services impossible.  This point is even more important in rural areas than it is in cities.

4              As I have said before, we need regional  PTA-type bodies covering the whole country, with control over all local rail, bus and ferry services.  See e.g. your 2012 report on competition in the bus industry, my oral evidence at Ev page 14 Q93.  I would add that in the Netherlands, there are PTA-like bodies controlling all local public transport, urban and rural.

5              In the context of cycling, we are constantly being exhorted to ‘go Dutch’.   The same should be true of public transport.  And what do Dutch cyclists do when it rains?  Or they have heavy luggage, or they want to go a long distance, perhaps to rural Friesland, or the islands off the north coast?  They use their excellent integrated  regulated  public transport network.    And to pay for their journeys, they get out their nationwide ‘Oystercard’,  the  ‘OV Chipkaart’.

6              Yes, one smartcard for the whole country, both urban and rural and valid on all forms of public transport!  Contrast the situation here in urban Nottingham where there are now three incompatible smartcard systems in one city – and that is just for buses!  (Trams and trains are not covered.)

B               Senior Bus Passes

7              A second major problem is the distorting effect of Senior bus passes.  Seniors living in rural areas insist on bus services (timetabled to leave their village after 09 30) so they can use their free passes.  They reject rail, ferry or shared taxis.  That is nonsensical.

8              I would not extend the free bus pass to other forms of public transport.   Rather I would replace it with a smart card ‘purse’ valid on all forms of public transport .  I would suggest an annual value of £520, (£10 per week.).  There would, of course, have to be legislation imposing a uniform smart card system on all operators of public transport.  See my written evidence to the 2012 enquiry, page Ev 75 paragraph 15, but note paragraph 6 above.

9              There might be a case for the smart card ‘purse’ to be larger for Seniors living in rural areas a long way from the nearest large town.  However, another advantage of public transport being  controlled by a PTA is that the PTA sets the fares.  We must put an end to the absurd situation where one sector of the rural population can make unlimited journeys ‘to town’ for nothing, while other sectors (particularly the young and the unemployed) have to pay very high fares.  We can only do that by (both) ending bus deregulation and putting some upper limit on the use of Senior bus passes.

July 2013