Simon Mathieson has been appointed as operations director and will have five general managers reporting to him.  Mathieson will offer a single, senior operational point of contact for the business.  Mark Kipling has been appointed as MD Coventry in recognition of the importance of the business to the city. Mathieson and Kipling, along with Phil Smith as MD Dundee, will report direct to Coates.

Gavin Peace, recently appointed as engineering director, has reshaped the engineering team to provide greater operational focus and an improvement in the level of training. Depot engineering and central support functions will be managed as separate teams.

Other changes see Andrew Galloway appointed as finance director UK Bus and Dean Watkins taking on a three-year secondment to Midland Metro to cover for Fred Roberts who is focussing on the Birmingham city centre extension project.

“I have spent the last six months speaking with as many people in our business as possible, visiting all our sites at all times of the day and night to see the issues facing all our members of staff,” said Coates.

“As a result of what I have seen and heard I have made changes to give our business a more operational focus and restore individual management responsibility.

“I believe this is the best transport company in the country to work for but we still have improvements to make, I think this structure will help us deliver to make these improvements and more.”

National Express West Midlands is currently recruiting general managers and operations managers – click here for details

LEAD STORY:

Lib Dems pay price for Edinburgh tram farce
‘People have punished us for it,’ party’s Scottish leader concedes after Edinburgh’s voters eject council leader, transport chief and 11 colleagues

Nottingham unveils tram designs
Fleet of 22 new Alstom Citadis trams will operate on city’s expanded network from 2014

NEWS:

Franchise extension as devolved plans progress
Northern has won a seven-month extension to contract

Skills council warns of ‘an impending crisis’
‘State of the Nation’ report from People 1st, the sector skills council, finds that more than half of employers struggle to recruit people with core skills

Pension row escalates with second EMT ballot
RMT union to ballot members as ASLEF strike action continues

ATOC sets out rolling stock requirements
Size of UK fleet expected to grow by as much as 18% in CP5

Better Bus Area Fund could scupper QC plans
Metro concerns over funding as CBT backs operator proposals

American joint venture for Alexander Dennis
New Flyer partnership as Daimler quits North America

INVESTMENT:

Balfour Beatty selected for light rail extension
West Midlands PTE Centro has named Balfour Beatty as the preferred bidder to extend the Midland Metro through Birmingham’s city centre

Crossrail tunnelling finally gets under way
TBM Phyllis breaks ground at Royal Oak in West London

TECHNOLOGY:

Bus and coach app for Volvo
Swedish manufacturer launches iPhone app with product information and dealer location service

Bombardier opens new Brazil monorail facility
New factory will be global centre for firm’s monorail technology

INSIDE TRACK: Financial Results

Stagecoach prospers mightily in Manchester
Group benefits from £63m investment as margins head towards 20%

Govia trebles profits at Southeastern
Strong revenue growth and doubled subsidy payments outstrip rising costs of operation

INSIDE TRACK: Market Monitor

North West leads the way in regional rail growth since 1996
ORR analysis shows that railway remains overwhelmingly local and focused on the home counties

TRAVEL TEST: Midland Metro

‘The Metro’ is suffering from an identity crisis
With a mixture of different signs, there’s genuine confusion about the brand when travelling on the Midland Metro, Alex Warner discovers

COMMENT:

George Muir: Rail Delivery Grouptakes to the stage

Government recognises that a cross-industry body is neededto lead the railway, something Network Rail cannot do on its own

Nick Richardson: The emerging public transport market
Nick Richardson, policy director at the Transport Planning Society, explores opportunities for developing demand for buses

Great Minster Grumbles: Sack the mediocre ministers, not us
Our Whitehall insider imagines what’s going on inside the minds of the mandarins at Great Minister House, home of the DfT

SPECIAL REPORT: Independent operators

An increasing state of independence?
Next week managers from Britain’s independent operators will meet at the ALBUM conference. So what is the state of the sector?

CAREERS

Employer Focus: Translink
Catherine Mason is focussed on the delivery of efficient public transport for Northern Ireland

Arriva helps women on their career journey
Bus and rail group joins ‘An Inspirational Journey’, an initiative to help increase the number of women at senior levels of UK business and industry

RECRUITMENT

Managing Director – Arriva Midlands

Regional Network Manager, Bristol – First

General Manager – Southern Vectis

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The debacle over Edinburgh’s tram project is being blamed for the disastrous performance by the Liberal Democrats in city council elections on May 3.

Former council leader Jenny Dawe and Gordon Mackenzie, the city’s transport leader for the past five years, were voted out along with 11 of their colleagues, leaving the party with only three elected members. The swing away from the Lib Dems was much stronger in Edinburgh than nationally, with senior figures in the party conceding that the tram project, which is five years late and more than £200m
over-budget, had contributed to the backlash from voters.

Commenting on the influence of the tram project on the vote, Willie Rennie, leader of the Scottish Liberal Democrats said: “People have punished us for it, there’s no doubt about that.”

Dawe, who has led the city’s Lib Dems since 1999, pointed out that all of the major parties had voted for the trams at one stage.

“It was a project that we inherited, [but] we voted for it in the beginning, we managed to turn it around and get things going the right way now,” she said.

The city council is now controlled by a coalition between Labour and the SNP. The new transport convener is Labour’s Lesley Hinds, a former Lord Provost of Edinburgh. She said this week that she remains a strong supporter of the tram project, although she said it had been mis-managed. The £776m project is due to be completed in the summer of 2014.

This story appears in the latest issue of Passenger Transport. Click here to subscribe.

This story appears in the latest issue of Passenger Transport. Click here to subscribe.

Passenger transport businesses are facing “an impending crisis” when it comes to finding staff with skills to meet increasing customer expectations and technology changes that are taking place within the sector, People 1st has warned.

The sector skills council’s State of the Nation Passenger Transport 2012 research report, published this month, found that more than half (52%) of employers working across the passenger transport sector said that they had experienced difficulties finding staff with the right level of customer service skills. This is significantly higher than the 40% average across all sectors.

A further 57% of employers said that they had found it difficult to recruit people into positions with specific technical requirements as changes to the way people travel, new technologies around fuel or ticketing, and investment in new infrastructure means changes to the skills required.

Brian Wisdom, chief executive officer of People 1st, said that while there is a growing recognition that people skills are as important as technical capabilities, finding applicants with the right blend is proving difficult for many organisations.

“Employers tell us that while they are receiving a lot more applications for jobs, the quality is not necessarily rising because a lot of people just don’t have the skills they want or need.

“There is a often a poor perception of the sector, which means that people with the right skills just don’t consider entering into a career in passenger transport. Whether it’s the idea that the sector is not customer-focused, that there are few career opportunities or chances for progression, or the legal requirements around employment, some sectors are really struggling to find the right people.

“All of this needs to be addressed if we’re going to fill the skills gaps currently present.”

Wisdom said provision of more training would help to address these issues and the report highlights the significant opportunities within the sector. For example, he said that providing customer service training to existing staff members can be accomplished relatively quickly and can deliver tangible results, which creates ongoing momentum for change.

Per capita spending on training in the passenger transport sector is currently £675 each year, which is 60% less than the UK average of £1,725. And the money that is currently invested in training is primarily focussed on regulatory requirements as many of these industries are heavily regulated.

The State of the Nation report found that 44% of businesses in the passenger transport sector believe that at least some of their staff would benefit from additional training. Just over one in five reported that at least half of their staff could benefit (rising to 42% in the rail industry).

To address the lack of technical skills that many employers are facing, the report advocates the introduction of more on-the-job training such as apprenticeships.

It suggests that a greater focus on showcasing the excellent career opportunities, providing clear career pathways, and offering opportunities to gain qualifications while working would make the industry more attractive to skilled employees.

The full story appears in the latest issue of Passenger Transport. Click here to subscribe.

This story appears in the latest issue of Passenger Transport. Click here to subscribe.

European passenger transport group Arriva is the latest partner to join ‘An Inspirational Journey’, which works to increase the number of women working at the senior corporate level in UK business and industry. Arriva, which operates bus and train services in 12 countries, has signed up 28 women from the group who have been identified as having potential to be future business leaders to An Inspirational Journey’s ‘Pearls’ programme.

The Pearls programme is an initiative that already reaches out to more than 4,000 women from a multitude of sectors and regions across the UK, who have been identified as future business leaders. The programme focuses on building confidence, recognising capabilities and developing contacts, while providing control and choice.

Public transport in the UK has traditionally been a male-dominated industry, but Arriva believes that attracting, retaining and developing a more balanced and diverse cross-section of employees provides a richer pool of talent from which future leaders can be drawn.

“At Arriva, the solution to more balanced gender representation in leadership roles is not about setting quotas and targets but encouraging and offering the right opportunities to grow and develop employees,” said Alison O’Connor, Arriva’s group HR director.

“We believe that The Pearls initiative fits well with our approach to equipping current and future high potential leaders with the tools, skills and experience for progression to more senior roles. The tailored Pearls initiative will complement our own development programmes, widening peer-networks to other women who may have shared experience, aspirations and challenges.”

Heather Jackson, founder of The Pearls and An Inspirational Journey, said: “By identifying and highlighting these women as future business leaders, Arriva is helping to lead the way in its sector, ensuring they have the skills, qualities and support they need.

The Pearls is already working with companies across all sectors in the UK. These include Royal Bank of Scotland, Ernst & Young, BT, National Australia Group, Grant Thornton, Asda, DLA Piper, Pinsent Masons, Eversheds, Morrisons, Northumbrian Water, Yorkshire Water, Walker Morris, Angel Trains, Coutts and Atkins.

This story appears in the latest issue of Passenger Transport. Click here to subscribe.

The role: As a senior member of the Regional Commercial team you will be responsible for managing and co-ordinating the network of services throughout the region to ensure a reliable, punctual and cost effective service to our customers. You will also identify key opportunities for growth, increase revenues and reduce costs through efficiencies

You will manage changes to our network of services through your team, produce high quality tender submissions, engage with stakeholders and identify changes in customer behaviour and demand. You will have a proven track record in similar field, with excellent geographical knowledge. The successful candidate will have excellent business acumen, commercial awareness and financial management. You will also be highly literate, numerate, and solution focused.

The rewards: Salary of £35,000 – £45,000 + Car allowance. 25 days holiday, pension scheme after qualifying period and free bus travel for yourself and your immediate family.

What’s next: To apply, please send your C.V. and covering letter to Anshika Dua,Enterprise House, Easton Road, Bristol, BS5 0DZ or email: anshika.dua@firstgroup.com by 8th June 2012

First is proud to be an Equal Opportunities Employer.

REMEMBER: When you contact a company to enquire about the job they are advertising say that you saw it on passengertransport.co.uk

Arriva Midlands operates services from 16 locations across a geographically dispersed region. As Managing Director your leadership will ensure the delivery of excellent performance metrics opposite diverse stakeholders. This will be achieved by generating regional strategies for growth, working with local partnerships and based on a solid understanding of customer needs.

With a proven track record of successful leadership, you will have a comprehensive understanding of the challenges facing the transport industry and the ability to inspire a senior management team to develop and deliver relevant strategies.

Of graduate level intellect, you must possess strong influencing, communication and relationship management skills. To meet the changing demands of the market you will also have the skills and confidence to lead a programme of change.

If you believe you can make a difference – and your career to date has provided you with the appropriate experience – please apply by email, providing your full CV and a covering letter explaining why you are suitable for this role to Jo Humphries, People & Change Director, at humphriesj@arriva.co.uk.

Closing date: Friday 8th June 2012

REMEMBER: When you contact a company to enquire about the job they are advertising say that you saw it on passengertransport.co.uk

Go South Coast is looking to recruit an exceptional individual capable of running the highly successful Isle of Wight bus operator, Southern Vectis.

Reporting to the Operations Director of Go South Coast, this role will have full responsibility for all the Commercial, Marketing and Operational functions and will be required to further develop and strengthen our existing business whilst looking for further expansion opportunities.

Southern Vectis operate over 100 vehicles on local bus and contracted services and provide the most comprehensive transport solution for the Isle of Wight offering a range of frequent services connecting the major population areas. The General Manager will take full P&L responsibility and will ensure the business runs efficiently with a focus on ensuring the best level of service is provided to our customers.

An attractive salary and relocation package is on offer to the successful applicant.

CV and hand written covering letter to:

Diana Wilks,
Human Resources Manager
Go South Coast
Towngate House
2-8 Parkstone Road
Poole BH12 2PR

Applications to be received by: Friday 15 June 2012

REMEMBER: When you contact a company to enquire about the job they are advertising say that you saw it on passengertransport.co.uk