NXWM feels benefits of faster journey times
Measures put in place during 2018 have enabled the company to ‘change the tide’ with speeds improving by 1% – and revenue per mile is up 4% Buses in Birmingham National Express Group’s West Midlands bus business has improved bus speeds for the first time in more than a decade, bucking the national...
Haines vows ‘honest’ choices on punctuality
Industry needs to accept ‘greater realism’ on rail performance Andrew Haines: Network Rail chief executive Network Rail chief executive Andrew Haines has set out plans to provide government and passenger groups with “more honest and sophisticated” choices on how to restore punctuality to an acceptable level. Reflecting on seven years of declining performance and...
Industry takes initiative on rail reform agenda
RDG proposes reforming fares regulation to offer more flexible, better value fares while Network Rail boss sets out plans to restructure company RDG anticipates that its proposed reforms would be self-financing Network Rail and the Rail Delivery Group have taken the initiative in setting the ground for changes to the way the rail...
Go-Ahead moves into Greater Manchester
Group to pay £11.17m to acquire First’s Queen’s Road depot After weeks of intense speculation about the future of FirstGroup’s Manchester bus operation, it was confirmed this week that Go-Ahead has agreed terms to acquire First Manchester’s Queen’s Road depot in Cheetham Hill. The sale will take Go-Ahead into Greater Manchester, Britain’s second-largest...
First poised to sell off Manchester business
Loss-making operation expected to be broken up and sold to three buyers as poll finds three-quarters are in favour of re-regulating the region’s buses The Manchester business has been part of First for 22 years FirstGroup is understood to be close to completing the sale of its loss-making bus operations in Greater Manchester....
Haines aims to restore status of rail operation
New chief executive aims to return reliable operation to the heart of Network Rail strategy and raise the status of the railway as a profession Andrew Haines Network Rail’s new chief executive, Andrew Haines, has set out an agenda to position operating the railway reliably as his company’s core activity, replacing lost operating skills...
£100m bid to see off GM franchising plans
Greater Manchester’s Onebus consortium of bus operators has offered a blueprint for improving bus services – without the need for re-regulation The blueprint pledges 450 new buses for Greater Manchester Greater Manchester’s bus operators this week launched a £100m partnership blueprint to revolutionise the bus network and deliver on the region’s ambitions. Andy Burnham,...
‘Bus use decline can be reversed’
Ahead of next month’s UK Bus Summit in London, senior bus industry figures have argued that a sustained decline in bus use across Great Britain is not inevitable. But the industry needs a long-term investment strategy and help with congestion The decline in bus use across the United Kingdom can be halted if the...
Stagecoach considers US coach business sale
Increasing competition sees Stagecoach write down the value of North American assets and consider whether to exit the US market or adapt There’s a new kid in town: Flixbus began operating in the US in May Stagecoach has started discussions with a potential buyer of its North American coach business. The option of...
Pension deficit clouds FirstGroup break-up
On his first day as the group’s new chief executive, Matthew Gregory says that £430m pension deficit would have to be accounted for in any disposals FirstGroup’s new chief executive, Matthew Gregory, has indicated that breaking up the company remains a possibility. Presenting the group’s half year financial results on his first day...
Lothian thinks big with 100-seat tri-axles
Alexander Dennis is building buses for Edinburgh again. January will see the first of 42 new high capacity double deckers enter service in the city The 13.4-metre vehicles are capable of carrying up to 134 passengers A lone piper emerged from behind the curtain on the shop floor at Alexander Dennis’s factory in...
‘Cities ignoring buses would be missing out’
Campaigners point to new research and urge government not to overlook the benefits of buses when allocating £2.4bn Transforming Cities Fund The report cites the ‘Fastway’ project in Crawley as an example of a project that has improved journey times and reliability and caused a decline in car use With the government having...
