LCR selects Stagecoach and Go-Ahead

LCR selects Stagecoach and Go-Ahead

Stagecoach has been selected to operate the franchised bus network based in St Helens while Go-Ahead will operates services in Wirral   Mayor Steve Rotheram: buses aren’t a ‘nice to have’ – they’re a lifeline   Stagecoach and Go-Ahead Group have been selected as the first operators to run the...
Public transport’s ‘global family gathering’

Public transport’s ‘global family gathering’

Dubai will host the UITP Summit on April 21-23. We spoke to UITP’s secretary general, Mohamed Mezghani, about the event and what visitors can look forward to   Mohamed Mezghani: “For me, the Summit is about people”   Mohamed, the UITP Summit is heading to Dubai in April, less than...
Out now: The latest issue of Passenger Transport

Out now: The latest issue of Passenger Transport

What’s inside the latest edition of Passenger Transport:     LEAD STORY NPR rail improvements ‘will actually happen’ More than a decade after the Northern Powerhouse Rail project was first proposed, the government has unveiled a three-phase plan for its delivery   NEWS Cornwall probes bus regulation options Market engagement...
NPR rail improvements  ‘will actually happen’

NPR rail improvements ‘will actually happen’

More than a decade after the Northern Powerhouse Rail project was first proposed, the government has unveiled a three-phase plan for its delivery   The plans would see Manchester Piccadilly expanded   A three-phase plan for the long-promised Northern Powerhouse Rail project was unveiled by the government this week. The...
100 more bus routes in Wales and £2 fare cap?

100 more bus routes in Wales and £2 fare cap?

Labour has pledged an enhanced bus offer for Wales if it wins this May’s Senedd election, but will this be matched funding? Rhodri Clark reports   Welsh bus fares for adults aged 22 to 59 would be capped at £2   Labour has pledged 100 more bus routes in Wales...
Let’s get on and fix rail replacement

Let’s get on and fix rail replacement

  A new report by CMAC has shed light on an often overlooked but frequent aspect of the railway’s customer service proposition   2026 has already brought two major shocks. FA Cup holders, my beloved, Crystal Palace, being knocked out of this year’s tournament by non-league Macclesfield, 117 places below...
Putting customers front and centre

Putting customers front and centre

  Those taking decisions should always put themselves in the shoes of the passenger and ask whether what they will think reasonable   Average bus speeds in central London are now down to 7.4mph (picture: Shutterstock)   It was interesting to see the latest figures for bus passenger numbers (PT351)....
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NEG/Stagecoach merger talks: The end of an era

NEG/Stagecoach merger talks: The end of an era

Stagecoach and National Express are in merger talks. The new combined group would operate one third of Britain’s buses outside of London     Stagecoach is synonymous with Britain’s privatised public transport sector. But with that industry now evolving into one where the public sector will play a much greater role, the group looks set...
We need radical actions, not hot air

We need radical actions, not hot air

  Lurid warnings and distant targets won’t avert climate change. Transport is a key battleground and we desperately need a plan   Boris Johnson last week told the assembly of world leaders at the United Nations in New York that COP26 had to be a “turning point for humanity”   I don’t know about you,...
Branding must not suffer during hiatus

Branding must not suffer during hiatus

  GB Railways may be two or three years away but it’s coming so many TOCs have given up on their brand. This should worry us all   The BR logo would appear to resonate with Joe and Joanna Public   I’ve been living the dream this last month and have travelled on every TOC...
Scheduler of the Year Award judges named

Scheduler of the Year Award judges named

Four-strong judging panel, including previous winner, will decide winner of the 2021 Joe Wood Scheduler of the Year, sponsored by CitySwift   Richard Sherratt: Joe Wood Scheduler of the Year 2020   The winner of last year’s inaugural Joe Wood Scheduler of the Year Award is among the judges for the 2021 prize. Trentbarton’s Richard...
We must get better to lure motorists

We must get better to lure motorists

  The sad truth is that too many bus services are at best tolerable. We need to make them desirable if we are to achieve modal shift   A welcoming sight?   Travelling on a number of local bus services in the south of England with some industry friends recently, I was, quite frankly, very...
‘Operators should not rush back to normal’

‘Operators should not rush back to normal’

New research by Transport Focus concludes that operators need to keep up additional Covid-19 measures and communications to reassure passengers   Wearing a face mask is the key safety measure for more nervous passengers   Although restrictions have eased and passenger volumes continue to recover, public transport operators have been warned not to “rush back...
Barbara Castle showed how to get things done

Barbara Castle showed how to get things done

  Harold Wilson said he wanted a ‘tiger in the tank’ of his transport policy when he appointed Barbara Castle – and that’s what he got   Barbara Castle showed us that you need to go out there and relentlessly sell radical change   On September 8th more than 350 people took part in the first...
Don’t get complacent about punctuality

Don’t get complacent about punctuality

  Punctuality and reliability soared when lockdown took rail users away. We must not now regard the return of delays as inevitable   Unless we’re all over the detail, a trend of worsening punctuality could become a crisis in a few months’ time   “The problem with you is that you are always looking for...
Rethinking the railway for a post-Covid world

Rethinking the railway for a post-Covid world

  We have an opportunity to fundamentally reconsider how we use space on trains as well as the role of the national rail network   Before the pandemic, Dutch railway NS worked on train designs that enhance the experience for customers   The last 18 months have been a time of unparalleled change and disruption...
‘Governments need to get real’ - Stagecoach

‘Governments need to get real’ – Stagecoach

Launching group’s new sustainability strategy, boss Martin Griffiths called for ‘radical behaviour change and incentives to reward the right choices’   Martin Griffiths: We need to be more honest about the scale of the challenge   Stagecoach has issued a blunt warning to governments to turn warm words on greener travel into practical actions that...
A27 - a billion pound act of vandalism

A27 – a billion pound act of vandalism

  The proposed new dual carriageway between Lewes and Polegate reveals the flaws in the government’s £27bn road building plan   View of the A27 from Mount Caburn   As the COP 26 event in Glasgow approaches, greater scrutiny than usual is rightly being paid to the government’s environmental promises and, more pertinently, their actions....
It’s time to swap Teams for trains

It’s time to swap Teams for trains

  The rail industry must radically rethink its proposition to business customers in order to lure them out of their online bunkers   A radical reinvention is needed   What’s strange is how quickly people have changed! I’ve noticed a few times recently some bemused looks from industry folk when I’ve explained, often as a...