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BUS REGULATION (SCOTLAND) BILL

Consultation Response

Introduction

The University of Strathclyde Students Association represents all students studying at theinstitution.

Our vision is to empower students to shape, enhance and enjoy their Strathclyde

University experience.

As a charitable organisation, our mission is to provide a representative voice for the

student body; to offer advice & support whenever it is required; to encourage individual

involvement with our wide range of clubs & societies; and to provide a safe space in which

students can develop as individuals.

We are responding to this consultation in our capacity as a representative voice of thestudent body, since bus travel is an important issue for many, if not all of our members.

1. Do you support the general aim of the proposed Bill? Please indicate

yes/no/undecided and explain the reasons for your response.

Yes we support the general aim of granting transport authorities greater control

over bus services in their area by enabling authorities to regulate how they are

delivered.

Our support is based on the hope that tightening bus regulation will help to help

ensure that routes are protected for their public service value, rather than their

money-making potential.

We also hope that by increasing regulation, there is an opportunity to ensure bus

services are accessible and affordable for those on low incomes, specifically

students. This is important to the USSA as a high percentage of our students rely on

public transport to access the campus. It is therefore crucial that the public service

provided by operating a route is recognised and protected. Particularly as the

provision of bus services plays a key role in widening access to higher education(which will be elaborated on in response to question seven) and in enabling society

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to benefit from the education of those with high academic potential, rather than

high financial resources.

2. What would be the main practical advantages of the legislation proposed? What

would be the disadvantages?

The USSA anticipates the main advantages of the proposed legislation to be as

follows:

- Moving control of bus services closer to the areas of delivery would help to ensure

that decisions taken are suitable for the locality. For example, in an area such as

Glasgow where there is a high concentration of students, it is particularly crucial

that bus services are tailored to meet unique local needs. In this instance, ensuring

there is a plentiful supply of affordable bus services to institutions of higher and

further education.

-

The ability to use local authority fleets to provide socially useful services where

there are gaps in provision will inevitably make public transport more accessible to

those in areas of low provision. This is likely to increase the number of people

using public transport, thereby reducing carbon emissions.

- Bundling profitable and non-profitable routes together for franchise will ensure

transport operators are forced to embrace their public service obligations and will

ensure bids are made for less profitable routes too.

- Setting a minimum level of service allows transport authorities to enforce a quality

assurance process. This will be beneficial to students who rely on the service, as it

will help to ensure basic standards are met. We hope this would facilitate

guarantees that services run at useful, albeit less profitable times. For example,

student timetables do not typically follow the pattern of a normal working week.

This is especially the case at exam time, when students may need to stay in the

library until the early hours of the morning and still require a safe, reliable way to

get home. These are factors that the Bill would allow transport authorities to

consider when setting a minimum level of service.

- Empowering the Transport Commissioner to impose financial penalties where

contractual agreements are broken would ensure the terms of the final Bill could

be enforced.

3. In what ways do you envisage reregulation being used to improve bus services?

The USSA hopes regulation would be used to improve bus services for students, in

the following ways:

- By ensuring that bus services are regular to provide students with as many

opportunities to use the service as possible.

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- To guarantee that fares are consistently affordable and that student discounts are

made available as part of minimum service agreements.

- By ensuring services are relevant to the locality. For example, the USSA would like

to see regulation used to ensure there are user-friendly bus services to all higher

and further education institutions in the city of Glasgow. (See answer to question

2)

- To ensure that out of hours services to HEIs are just as regular, affordable and

accessible as peak time services, to facilitate the often irregular pattern of student

lifestyles. (See answer to question 2).

4. How can community transport be better utilised to serve local communities and

particularly low passenger volume routes?

n/a

5. Do you agree that the Traffic Commissioner should be able to impose greater

financial penalties on operators who a) fail to meet the terms of the franchise

or b) walk away from the franchise altogether?

We are aware that at present, the Traffic Commissioner is limited in the action he

or she can take to sanction transport operators who fail to meet the terms of their

franchise or those who abandon their franchise agreements.

We also recognise that financial penalties are generally the only realistic way in

which contractual obligations can be enforced.

We therefore agree that the Traffic Commissioner should be able to impose greater

financial penalties on operators who fail to meet their franchise agreements,

particularly as their obligations to the local community increase.

We suggest that the money recovered might be directly reinvested into the service.

6. What is your assessment of the likely financial implications of the proposed Bill

to you or your organisation? What other significant financial implications are

likely to arise?

n/a

7. Is the proposed Bill likely to have any substantial positive or negative

implications for equality? If it is likely to have a substantial negative

implication, how might this be minimised or avoided?

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A high percentage of students at the University of Strathclyde commute to the

institution from their parental home. As such, many rely on a bus service. This is

particularly important for those from lower socio-economic backgrounds, who may

not be able to afford a car or any other more expensive forms of transport.

Therefore ensuring that socially useful services are provided will help to guaranteethat our university remains geographically accessible to everyone. This plays a

crucial and practical role in widening access to the university across social class

boundaries, as well as geographic ones.

Thus by helping to ensure the campus is just as physically accessible to those from

disadvantaged backgrounds as from others, it will help to equalise opportunities of

access to higher education.

8.

Do you have any other comments or suggestions that are relevant to the needfor or detail of this Bill?

It appears that that focus of the Bill is to protect the future of less profitable, yet

socially useful routes. Although we are supportive of this aim, the USSA believes

the Bill should also include obligatory detail on the affordability of bus travel,

particularly for students, who typically have a low income.

We feel it should be a requirement of minimum service to ensure discount fares are

available to students, without restrictions on, for example, times or zones.

It should also be noted that although discounted tickets are often available onmulti-week passes, the process of upfront payment is prohibitive as the costs are

significant for those on low incomes, such as students. This is a particular problem

when students have to cross local authority boundaries, as is the case for many

students of Strathclyde who live in their parental home and commute. As such,

under the current system, students do not have equal access to the benefits

available.

One possible solution would be to ensure payment schemes are available in each

locality. For example, Lothian Buses has a scheme called Ridacard through which

seasonal passes can be purchased with monthly direct debits or pay as you go top-

ups. Under this scheme, additional student discounts are also available. iAs such,

students can benefit from the maximum savings available with more manageable,

regular payments.

The USSA believes that similar schemes should be a requirement of all minimum

level of service agreements to ensure bus travel is as accessible and affordable as

possible, by providing a menu of payment options.

Once the financial detail has been strengthened, the USSA would be pleased to

support a Bill that we hope will ensure bus travel is accessible, more widely used

and key to widening access to higher education.

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ihttp://lothianbuses.com/timetables-tickets-maps/fares-and-tickets/ridacard