Bus Reform Consultation Guide
The Mayor has handed you the once-in-a-lifetime chance to take your local buses into public control. It's a London-style system called franchising and she's consulting on it right now!
Franchising allows fares, routes, and timetables to be integrated and planned in the public interest. It's the system used in every other European country. It would also put passengers and the planet ahead of private profit.
You've only got 8 weeks to take part! We've created a guide on how to take part to support public control below. You can use it to fill in the short questionnaire online or on their paper survey. Please cast your vote NOW.
If you want to download a paper copy to post to the Mayor free-of-charge, please click here. If you don't have time to respond in detail please use our pre-loaded email tool here: weownit.org.uk/VotePublicControlWY
Start your response to the consultation now
Q1: The Strategic Case sets out the challenges facing the West Yorkshire bus
market and says it is not performing as well as it could. Do you have any
comments on this?
Guide: We suggest saying, in your own words, that you strongly agree with the strategic case that buses are not performing well. You could also name some of the areas you think are particularly bad.
Background: The strategic case identifies 5 key areas for improvement: the network (e.g., routes), bus priority, fares and tickets, green vehicles, and 'customer' (we like to say passenger) service.
Q2: The Strategic Case concludes that the Proposed Franchising Scheme is the best option for the Combined Authority to meet its strategic objectives for bus in the region. Do you have any comments on this?
Guide: We suggest saying, in your own words, that you strongly agree that franchising is the best strategic option. Evidence for this includes: it is more certain to deliver, it guarantees ticket improvements, it makes it legal to introduce a single set of simple tickets, it is more straightforward as operators can't find ways to get around the rules, it is not conditional on operator support, it provides a single app for passengers, it simplifies customer services more.
Background: The strategic case identifies ways in which franchising and the alternative arrangement (and Enhanced Partnership with the private operators) would meet strategic aims listed in Q1 background. While the EP may deliver some improvements, franchising delivers more and with greater certainty.
Q3: Do you have any comments on the conclusion of the Economic Case that the
Proposed Franchising Scheme will offer value for money to the public sector?
Guide: We suggest saying, in your own words, that you think the economic case should say more clearly that public control is the better option. It generates 44% (or £200+ million more) more benefits to the economy. It is also better for the planet, doing more to keep people out of cars.
Q4: The Commercial Case sets out how the Proposed Franchising would be ran
commercially. Do you have any comments on this?
Guide: We suggest saying, in your own words, that you think it is the right decision to bring bus depots and vehicles into public ownership. We suggest you also ask that drivers become council employees (through a so-called Direct Labour Organisation) and that we have a council-owned Operator of Last Resort in case we need to guarantee services keep running (e.g., an operator has their contract taken off them for poor quality services or pulls out due to their own financial mismanagement).
Background: This section is about how the system gets run from the perspective of introducing competition into bus services.
Q5: The Financial Case concludes that the Combined Authority could afford to
introduce and operate the Proposed Franchising Scheme, but this carries
additional financial risk. Do you have any comments on this?
Guide: You could raise concerns that the financial case doesn't strongly support franchising. Reasons to be concerned include that it fails highlight that franchising could add £1 billion in economic benefits, that the costs of continuing poor services under private control to the public are very large, and that the current assessment doesn't show that if bus use grows, franchising will be even better for finances as it retains more of the profits in the bus network (by stopping them getting paid out as dividends to private shareholders) allowing greater investment and improvements.
Q6: The Management Case sets out how the Combined Authority would manage the Proposed Franchising Scheme. Do you have any comments on this?
Guide: We suggest supporting the management case, as this supports franchising further, but asking that the management of bus services become more participatory under public control. You could ask that a transport board be created to make decisions about local services with represenatives from local councils, businesses, and passengers alongside employed transport experts and bus drivers.
Q7: The Combined Authority’s draft Equality Impact Assessment identifies the
potential impact of the Proposed Franchising Scheme on persons with protected
characteristics. Do you have any comments on it?
Guide: We suggest raising concerns that there was no Equality Impact Assessment mentioned for the Enhanced Partnership option (which leaves private operators in charge). You could also ask that represenatives from these groups get to have participatory role in designing the network, bus vehicles (as has happened in Liverpool) and other bus infrastructre (like bus stops).
Q8: Overall, to what extent do you support or oppose the introduction of the
Proposed Franchising Scheme? Why do you say this?
Multiple Choice Answer: Support
Guide: Please indicate your strong support. This is the most important question. You can evidence with anything from the above, including that it is better for the economy (44% better), environment (2x as good on green house gases), local control over services, certainty of delivery, stopping more people travelling by car.
Q9: Are there any changes that you think would improve the Proposed
Franchising Scheme?
Guide: We suggest saying in your own words that you want:
- Bus drivers to have their terms and conditions increased and protected so that they never decrease when different operators start running services. Bus drivers are employed through a Direct Labour Organisation to do this OR very strong and specific conditions are written into the franchise contracts.
- Bus passengers can report bus companies for bad services and that enough reports result in operators being fined or being kicked out from the region.
- Participatory design of the network.
Q10: Do you have any further comments?
Guide: Please say, in your own words, that you would like to see:
- A publicly owned bus company. See why here: https://weownit.org.uk/public-ownership/buses
- A clear timetable for when different service improvements will come in under franchising/public control.