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York businesses: sign-up to get free tailored travel advice

City of York Council’s i-Travel York team are hosing a breakfast meeting on Tuesday 26 November at the Best Western Monk Bar Hotel from 8.30am till 9:30am and are encouraging all businesses – particularly during this week’s York Business Week 2013 to consider attending.

The event will showcase a new video which is the result of collaboration work with York businesses and will also highlight the benefits of business travel planning and the services which the council can provide to businesses to assist them with their travel plans.
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Bus use in York down by 10% last year

Bus use click to enlarge

Over a million fewer journeys were made by bus last year in York.

This is equivalent to a 10% reduction in “stage carriage” service use. The figures are described as “provisional”.

The Council has yet to respond fully to a Freedom of Information request on bus usage in the City.

Requests for the City to publish bus reliability information are also mired in a legal wrangle.

Although Park and Ride use increased from 4.1 to 4.3 million trips, it did not offset what is the largest single year decline ever recorded in public transport use in the City.

The start of the decline can be traced back to 2011 when the Council confronted the major provider of services in the City (First) in an attempt to get the futuristic ftr taken off York’s roads.

The ftr had been popular with passengers but the dispute led to a period of conflict between the Labour run Council and bus operators.

Recent attempts to “hype” a fares reduction through the media proved to be ill judged as many users found that their journey was actually costing more.

The Council announced at its last meeting that it is scrapping the Quality Bus Partnership which has been a liaison point between bus operators, passenger representatives and the Council.

It will be replaced by another”behind closed doors” discussion group

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NB. Following on from the bad news about reduced footfall in the City, the Council report has also revealed a drop in car park use from 1.62 to 1.52 million.

They are forecasting a net shortfall of £250k (3.5%) from parking income following data from the first six months.

The decline in use followed a decision by the new Labour Council to implement a 36% increase in parking charges.

Bus reliability in York – silence continues

The Council continues only to make annual bus reliability figures available for passengers in the city.

At the last Council meeting Cllr Merrett confirmed that 1 in 5 buses were unreliable

“In the City of York area, 81% of the city’s non-frequent services (5 or fewer services per hour) ran on time (between 59 seconds early and 5 mins 59 secs late) in 2011/12.

In 2012/13, the equivalent figure was 82%”.

However it has subsequently been admitted that this is a single day sample and may bear little resemblance to the service experienced by users on most days of the year.

The Council is still resisting publishing reliability data even at a monthly level.

Such figures would at least give passengers an insight into how services vary from one season to the next.

The lack of information contrasts with the requirements placed on Train Operating Companies who are forced to publish data on a regular basis.

It is likely that this issue will be referred to the new Transport Secretary Baroness Kramer with a request that she intervene and set out a good practice guide.

York’s first £500,000 bus shelter.

Only a few months after the Council, announced that it was to provide a bus interchange next to the station, it is set to spend £500,000 on upgrading the bus shelters on Rougier Street and Station Rise.

£500,000 bus stop

It will dub them as a “central interchange” showing the plan to demolish Queen Street bridge, and centralise facilities off the main highway, to have been a bit of idle window dressing.

A Council report talks of the “use of lighting and public art to make the facilities generally more attractive, and a better place to spend time waiting for a bus”

Actually what passengers want is the bus to arrive on time plus timely and accurate information about any delays.

Once again it seems that the sub-urban areas are being ignored

In a separate announcement the Council says that it expects to spend over £1.4 million on improvements that will benefit bus services in the “inner” part of York.

The “better bus area” apparently includes part of Acomb and Dringhouses”

Most of the money will come from bus companies but around £400,000 will come from taxpayers.

Some will be spent on new sections of bus lane, traffic signals and kerb lines.

Once again there has been no consultation with passengers, residents or even local ward Councillors.

Revised York bus timetables start today

click for larger image

New timetables for First York bus services have been introduced today.

They can be found by clicking here

Click to download a larger scale bus map

Return fares* have been scrapped although “single journeys start from £1”.

No information has so far been published on how far you can travel for £1!

The cheapest “return” generally available now is the Firstday at £3-70 (which allows unlimited use of all First bus services in the City)

* On service 4, return tickets cost just £2 between the University of York and the City Centre/Rail Station.

* On Park & Ride services, return fares continue to be available at £2.60, for journeys from Park & Ride sites

Revised York bus timetables on First web site …… but still no reliability info

The detailed new bus timetables – which will be introduced on Sunday – can now be viewed on the First web site.

However, the Council continues to refuse to release information about bus service reliability in the City.

Ironically a meeting is taking place today which talks about the importance of “journey planning”. It seeks to promote increased bus use but develops acute myopia on the issue of service reliability information.

Uncertainty is the single factor most likely to cause potential bus users to instead opt for the car.

The Council in response to the latest Freedom of Information request, says that it has entered into a confidentiality agreement with the local bus companies.

It receives reliability data but the council claims that it is prevented, by the terms of the agreement, from sharing the information with passengers.

Only an annual reliability figure is published and that on an obscure DPT web site. The latest (2011/12) figures suggest that around 80% of York services run on time.

Incredibly even reliability data on services paid for by the Council taxpayer (around £800,000 is paid out in subsidies each year) is not published.

What has compounded the mistake has been a decision to cease independent checks of service reliability. These would not be covered by the data sharing protocol and could – as happened in the period up to 2011 – be published. Labour stopped the checks shortly after taking office.

The so called data sharing protocol is effectively a restrictive practice. which is to the disadvantage of the taxpayer and bus passenger.

It is likely that – unless more information is offered – that an appeal to the Information Commissioner (and possibly the Ombudsman) may be lodged.

In the mean time the governments Transport Minister is being urged to introduce regulations which require all public transport providers to publish the same quality of service information which rail operators have been forced to do for over a decade.

Over 12 months ago the Minister responsible urged the Council to start providing more quality of service information.

Suddenly we are awash with “All York” bus ticket sales information

The Council has issued a statement saying that 12,000 “All York” teenagers’ bus tickets were sold during August.

For 12 months the Council and bus companies resisted providing any information on sales figures.

When eventually they were forced to publish them, it was revealed that sales of the taxpayer subsidised “All York” tickets were only 25% of forecast levels.

The young persons travel tickets were designed to provide cheaper fares for teenagers during the schools holidays.

The £1-30 a day tickets were a worthy project in principle which bus companies should have been happy to fund. The extra revenue, won by filling empty seats, would have more than covered their costs

However, the York Council chose to offer a 20p per journey taxpayers subsidy.

So that’s around £2,400 taxpayers have had to fork out in just 1 month for a scheme that has netted bus companies around £15,000.

One bus operator is claiming that the August sales represent a 500% increase over the previous year. Given that there wasn’t an ”All York” teenagers ticket available last year then that seems to be a spurious claim.

If the announcement heralds a more open approach by the Council to the provision of information about local bus services then that is to be welcomed.

We look forward to seeing details of service reliability published on a regular basis.

York Council new bus contracts announced

The Council has confirmed that it has accepted tenders for new bus services which will operate from 1st September. The services involved are:

Route 21 Colton to York, via Middlethorpe Grove
Services on this route were retendered and the existing operator, Harrogate Coach Travel (trading as Connexions Bus), has been awarded the contract for the next three years. There will be no changes to the route or timetable. As part of the new contract, Harrogate Coach Travel will be introducing a new vehicle that meets more stringent Euro V emission standards (above the Council’s minimum standard) later in the year.

Route 24 Lindsey Avenue, Ascot Way and St Stephen’s Road to city centre via Acomb Centre (Monday to Saturday);

Route 26 Fordlands Road to South Bank via Broadway and city centre (Monday to Saturday);

Route 27 Heslington Hall to city centre via Broadway (Monday to Saturday);

Route 627 City centre to Fulford School via Heworth (school days);

Route 637 City centre to Archbishop Holgate’s School via Heworth (school days);

Route 647 Foxwood Lane to Manor School (school days).

Services on these routes were retendered and awarded to Arriva Yorkshire for the next three years starting on 2 September. There will be no changes to the routes or timetables. As part of the contract, Arriva Yorkshire will be introducing newer vehicles that meet more stringent Euro V emission standards (above the Council’s minimum standard) on all these routes later in the year.

Routes 35 and X35 Holme-on-Spalding-Moor to city centre

Services on these routes are provided under contract to City of York Council but, as cross-boundary services, with financial contributions from North Yorkshire County and East Riding of Yorkshire Councils. Services on these routes were retendered but the Council has not been able to award a new long-term contract due to a substantial increase in the price from bidders. The Council has reached agreement with Yorkshire Coastliner, which currently provides the service, to extend the current contract for a short period until we can find a more affordable solution for the three authorities. Officers are working with colleagues from neighbouring authorities to come up with an alternative route

York bus service changes – more details

From Sunday 29th September, First’s bus network in York will see changes that are based on feedback from customers who took part in a major consultation exercise this summer.

A mini ‘transport hub’ in Acomb, better services to York University and the return of a half hourly service in Haxby are the headlines and many other bus customers in York will see positive changes as a result of their feedback.

The future of the number 24 – a York Council subsidised services – remains unclear.

The changes are available for customers online – click here

They include a change requested by ourselves a couple of months ago :

• Acomb – Services 4 and 5 will run into Acomb forming a mini transport hub and re-establishing links to Acomb Front Street

• The number 4 and 5 are being decoupled and will once again operate as independent services

• The number 4 will now always run to Acomb at a Mon-Fri daytime frequency of 7/8 minutes

• It will no longer serve the stretch of Gale Lane between Foxwood Lane and Cornlands Road (which was only introduced last October)

• The 4 will now run to Acomb Front Street and back via the following loop: Cornlands Road >Gale Lane>Front Street> Green Lane > Tudor Road > Cornlands Road

• The 5 will no longer go to Foxwood terminating in Acomb from the north

• Haxby – Services 13 and 13A – First has introduced a new Service 13A to create additional journeys between Haxby and York with four arrivals in the centre by 9am.

• University of York (Heslington) – Services 4 and 6 will now run to the University and will serve the Heslington East campus, creating direct link from the University to Tang Hall and the hospital.

Extra morning buses to York Railway Station (Station Avenue) – Service 2 will run three extra early morning buses from Clifton Moor, via Rawcliffe Bar, to York Railway Station.

Full list of service changes announced by First:

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Bus consultation “Yes”, facts “No”

A Council spokesman was asked at the last meeting to agree to bus service reliability stats being published.

“Would the Cabinet Member join with me in congratulating First York on arranging to consult with passengers before deciding what changes to introduce to routes in the autumn, and would he also join with me in urging First to publish the service reliability data that it holds for each route to ensure an informed discussion on the need for changes?”

The response was cautious

“We understand that First will be looking to implement changes resulting from the consultation over the coming months and we look forward to working with them and with the City’s other bus operators to deliver a local bus network which better meets the needs of York’s residents”.

And Monty Python would have been proud of the response to the question on reliability,

“With regard to service reliability data, First operates services on a commercial basis, and continue to regard this data as commercially sensitive.

Certainly this data is key to understanding how services might be improved and the Council will continue to work with First and with other bus operators, to encourage them to demonstrate, including to the public, that network improvements are evidence based and that any changes made produce improvements.

So that’s a “No” then!

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