A look into English Bus competition: my ideas

[overthewater]

https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/bus-registration-competition-commission-recommendations

• an extra 14-day pre-notification period during which local transport authorities may review and discuss a registration application with the operator;
• a minimum standard notice period of 90 (as opposed to the current 56) days following acceptance of a change to an existing service registration;
• a restriction on making changes to any registration application during any notice period except by making a short-notice application and alignment of the reasons for any short-notice application to those used in Scotland; and
• a requirement that operators specify the frequency of services currently registered as ‘frequent’ (those with six or more services per hour) with a default band, so only frequencies in excess of this need to be detailed.

We are seeking views on the government’s preferred approach to implementing the Competition Commission’s recommendations relating to the registration of local bus services. The remedies aim to improve competition in the bus market. We are also seeking views on how to make the electronic bus service registration system more easily accessible to small and medium operators.

Other refs:

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The CC found that existing rules for registering ‘frequent services’ (i.e. those that run 6 or more times per hour), which simply requires a statement of fact to be made, allowed operators to flood a route with buses in response to a
competitor’s entrance to the market without having to make an application to the Traffic Commissioner. To prevent this from happening, the CC proposed that operators should have to be more specific about the number of services they expected to run under the ‘frequent services’ category when registering a new service or varying an existing service

The Government’s digital strategy sets out the aim to become digital by default. The Electronic Bus Service Registration system (EBSR) meets this aim, but despite being introduced in January 2008, only 20 % of existing registrations are made using EBSR, the rest are paper based. EBSR brings benefits to operators, local authorities and passengers in terms of reduced administrative costs, ease of updating local travel information and improvement in the completeness and timeliness of bus route / timetable information. However, market forces have not resulted in more significant uptake.

The consultation period began on Tuesday 11 March 2014 and will run until Tuesday 6 May 2014. Please ensure that your response reaches us before the closing date.

Personally, I don't believe this review will lead to any major overhaul which would benefit the industry or the public. I also believe this whole process to be a waste of money. I can't see how it will help new operators enter the market.

I do have to wonder if the rule to make "frequency" clearer could cause issues: What if one day there was a huge demand, would you still be allowed duplicates?

I would recommend the following:

• Any new routes registered, would only need 31 days’ notice, with no consultation needed with the council.
• If the incumbent operator needs to make changes against new competition then their first change would only be allowed after 31 days after the start of the new operator’s service.
• Any operator wishing make changes to any of their services would be allowed if the following happens:

• After 40 days, as long as the companies consult the local council over a 9 day period prior to any changes being sent to Voas. 31 days' notice then must be given the Vosa. All public notice must be well advertised over 21 days before the change takes place.
• 90 days cooling off period between each time a change takes place (This would be overridden if public demand and council consultation took place to sort out any minor issues. This would result in resetting the cooling off period back to 90 days each time it took place.)
• You would only require 62 days' notice to withdraw any service without replacement. This would be dropped to 40 days if replacements where to be put in to place.

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Has anyone seen any reports about this etc? As it seems to have been a very low key announcement.

 

[a729]

https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/bus-registration-competition-commission-recommendations

Other refs:
Personally, I don't believe this review will lead to any major overhaul which would benefit the industry or the public. I also believe this whole process to be a waste of money. I can't see how it will help new operators enter the market.

I do have to wonder if the rule to make "frequency" clearer could cause issues: What if one day there was a huge demand, would you still be allowed duplicates?

I would recommend the following:

• Any new routes registered, would only need 31 days’ notice, with no consultation needed with the council.
• If the incumbent operator needs to make changes against new competition then their first change would only be allowed after 31 days after the start of the new operator’s service.
• Any operator wishing make changes to any of their services would be allowed if the following happens:

• After 40 days, as long as the companies consult the local council over a 9 day period prior to any changes being sent to Voas. 31 days' notice then must be given the Vosa. All public notice must be well advertised over 21 days before the change takes place.
• 90 days cooling off period between each time a change takes place (This would be overridden if public demand and council consultation took place to sort out any minor issues. This would result in resetting the cooling off period back to 90 days each time it took place.)
• You would only require 62 days' notice to withdraw any service without replacement. This would be dropped to 40 days if replacements where to be put in to place.

--- old post above --- --- new post below ---
Has anyone seen any reports about this etc? As it seems to have been a very low key announcement.

I don't agree with reducing the notice about withrdrawing bus services.

Maybe make consultation a requirement for withdrawing buses