Author Archive
UK Bus Awards 2023 ‘Big Book of Big Winners’

UK Bus Awards 2023 ‘Big Book of Big Winners’

The UK Bus Awards 2023 presentation ceremony took place in London in November, and you can read all about the Gold, Silver and Bronze winners in this official Souvenir Brochure. Click on the image below to view The Big Book of Big Winners 2023.   If you are viewing the site on a tablet or...
Christmas cheer for public transport!

Christmas cheer for public transport!

London’s buoyant retail and hospitality sectors has spurred public transport recovery in the capital. Outside of London, bus groups reveal ‘very encouraging’ year-on-year passenger growth of 5-10%   Bus use is up by 8% in London   The festive period has brought encouraging signs of continued recovery in public transport passenger volumes. Transport for London...
Grand Union applies to run non-London trains

Grand Union applies to run non-London trains

Open access operator plans Edinburgh-Cardiff service   GUT’s Cardiff to Edinburgh services could use Class 222s   Grand Union Trains is seeking access rights to run the first open access passenger services which would exclude London. It says its proposed services between Cardiff and Edinburgh via Birmingham would provide a much-needed uplift in capacity and...
We need one last Christmas cracker

We need one last Christmas cracker

  Capital investment in transport across English cities is welcome, but we must not forget London. Its success must be maintained   50 year old Bakerloo line trains being maintained   I am writing this column after our work Christmas party, which was held in Manchester. Unfortunately, the Urban Transport Group team didn’t get invited...
A quarter century of caring for customers

A quarter century of caring for customers

  For almost 25 years Anthony Smith has represented transport users. He’s about to move on and leaves behind a strong legacy   Anthony Smith received the ‘Lifetime Contribution to Transport’ award at this year’s National Transport Awards   The internet was just a novelty, text messaging was starting to replace pagers, compact disc players...
Reflecting on a year of growth

Reflecting on a year of growth

First Bus has set the groundwork to enter 2024 with strong momentum, and continued investment   Janette Bell: ‘We’re on a mission to get more people to use the bus’   By Janette Bell At First Bus, we’re on a mission to get more people to use the bus – so unsurprisingly this has been...
UK cities need million more bus and rail users

UK cities need million more bus and rail users

Britain’s big cities should significantly increase public transport commuters to catch up with European counterparts, says Centre for Cities think tank   The UK’s big cities outside of London are outliers and would need nearly one million (963,000) additional workers taking public transport to work to bridge the gap with other cities overseas   The...
Go South Coast wins best operator award

Go South Coast wins best operator award

Rail Reform Bill, aimed at legislating rail reforms, was included in last week’s King’s Speech but concerns linger about the pace of the process   Winners celebate on stage at last week’s UK Bus Awards in London   Go South Coast was named UK Bus Operator of the Year at this week’s UK Bus Awards...
Women in Bus and Coach visit Parliament

Women in Bus and Coach visit Parliament

Event at House of Commons saw industry leaders and MPs from all parties hear from members, supporters and allies of the new national initiative   Members, supporters, and allies of the ‘Women in Bus and Coach’ initiative in Parliament last week   Women in Bus and Coach, the initiative to support women in the bus...
Transport must wait as election looms

Transport must wait as election looms

  With the government focussed on defying the odds and clinging to power, and Labour being cautious, transport is in the long grass   The prime minister Rishi Sunak hosting a Cabinet meeting last week   And so the long run into the general election has begun. It is the period of a Parliament when...
A mood-lifting trip should start with us

A mood-lifting trip should start with us

  Public transport isn’t just about essential journeys. It can also be about fun days out, but this opportunity is too often overlooked   I don’t think the transport industry does enough to extol the virtues of a trip out from a well-being perspective   Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. I guess...
Rail industry baffled by sluggish reform plans

Rail industry baffled by sluggish reform plans

Rail Reform Bill, aimed at legislating rail reforms, was included in last week’s King’s Speech but concerns linger about the pace of the process     The recent King’s Speech has drawn attention to industry frustration with the sluggish implementation of rail reform and the implementation of the Williams-Shapps Plan for Rail. While the Rail...