‘There isn’t a typical apprentice’
Amy Moore, head of apprenticeships at The Go-Ahead Group, on training the next generation Chelsea Dash When you hear the word ‘apprentice’, there’s a tendency to picture a recent school leaver opting for an alternative to university. But if you look around Go-Ahead’s bus and rail training academies, or visit our head office,...
Awareness and action will lead the change
CMAC Group has always championed women within the sector, and has conducted a selection of interviews to bring awareness to this important topic. We begin with Charlene Wallace, customer and freight director for Network Rail Charlene Wallace How long have you worked in the transport sector? I have worked for over 30 years...
Public transport is the ‘bright light of the city’
Next June, Barcelona will host the first UITP Global Public Transport Summit in four years. We asked UITP’s secretary general, Mohamed Mezghani, about what visitors can look forward to Mohamed Mezghani: “The sector is rebuilding … But we also know that it is redefining itself” The UITP Global Public Transport Summit is heading...
Fastrack in maturity plays to its strengths
Kent’s Fastrack bus-based rapid transit network is 15-years old, but its promoters are looking to the future with a switch to zero-emission Fastrack has helped unlock new housing developments in Kent Thameside By Andrew Garnett Kent’s Fastrack bus rapid transit scheme has been a poster child for what the bus can achieve over...
Can buses change and remain commercial?
Robert Montgomery says bus franchising is expensive and Enhanced Partnerships are ‘shotgun marriages’. Instead he proposes a third way Greater Manchester plans to introduce bus franchising By Robert Jack Published in March 2021, the National Bus Strategy for England effectively heralded the end of the “swashbuckling days of the the deregulated 1980s”. Bus...
A failed experiment is not a failure – Ableman
Transport for London innovation director Thomas Ableman says a willingness to try and fail is the secret to success when it comes to innovation Thomas Ableman By Robert Jack Thomas Ableman has devoted his career to innovation within the realm of public transport, with National Express, Chiltern Railways, his own start-up and now...
Bussveien – Europe’s longest BRT system
Stavanger, a city roughly the size of Oxford, is building a 50km Bus Rapid Transit network. This massive £1.44bn project will be completed by 2030 A visualisation of a Bussveien corridor By Robert Jack Do you wish you could get support for bus priority on a core corridor in your town or city?...
How do you solve a problem like priority?
Lancashire County Council has adopted digital bus priority as a means of improving journey times without the need for expensive infrastructure Alchera Technologies has used pinch point analysis technology to build a business case for bus priority improvements in Lancashire By Andrew Garnett Could there be an easier, cheaper and more effective way...
Sprint at the heart of a car restraint revolution
The first phase of the Sprint Bus Rapid Transit corridor in the West Midlands is almost complete, and it promises to change travel behaviour 24 trambus-style hydrogen-powered vehicles will be introduced with the second phase of Sprint By Andrew Garnett The second BRTuk Lunchtime Masterclass heard from Tom Skidmore, senior development manager Sprint...
Portsmouth becomes bus strategy showcase
Supported by £48m from the Department for Transport, the Bus Service Improvement Plan will fund new tickets, cut fares and speed up journeys There will be lower fares for certain groups, valid on all First and Stagecoach buses The city of Portsmouth could become the poster child of the government’s National Bus Strategy...
Stagecoach boss planning revolution
Stagecoach UK managing director Carla Stockton-Jones told the Young Bus Managers Network about her strategy for the future. Andrew Garnett reports Carla Stockton-Jones joined Stagecoach from Sky in 2020 It has been something of a baptism of fire for Carla Stockton-Jones since her appointment as Stagecoach’s UK managing director in October 2020. The...
51 rising stars in passenger transport
Who are the rising stars in UK public transport? Passenger Transport has teamed up with Tracsis Transport Consultancy, the executive search, selection and interim management specialists, to identify 51 dynamic passenger transport professionals to keep an eye on Alex Warner writes – Our industry continues to adapt to change, and we owe a lot...
