BUS USERS UK Annual Report 2008

1. Chairman’s Report
In the early part of 2008 we learned that Passenger Focus had been appointed as the government's 'bus passengers' champion' for England and while on one level we were naturally disappointed that BUS USERS UK had not been chosen, on another level we recognised that the task Passenger Focus was being asked to do required resources and experience that we lacked, particularly conducting the substantial customer satisfaction surveys that are already an important part of Passenger Focus's work in the rail sector.

But we also recognise the strengths of BUS USERS UK, which in the period of more than 20 years since Caroline Cahm recognised the need to give bus passengers a voice has shown that it can reach the passengers at bus stop level and has achieved a great deal for bus passengers with a small and dedicated staff and a limited budget. We meet regularly with Passenger Focus chairman, Colin Foxall, chief executive, Anthony Smith, and David Sidebottom, who has been appointed as bus passenger project manager and they will be going public shortly to announce how they intend to carry out their new role. Against this background BUS USERS UK staff have been working hard on behalf of passengers with a programme of surgeries, meetings with bus operators and local authorities, addressing conferences and meetings, meetings with national and local government, complaints handling on behalf of the Bus Appeals Body, quality audits for major bus companies, and representation on a wide range of national and local bodies.

We have also been preparing the ground in 2008 to develop our nationwide network of individual local contacts and to strengthen our links with local passenger groups. These are often the people working away at ground level and their input is vital to our understanding of both the local and indeed the national picture. We know too that in 2009 we will be involved in a great deal of consultation both with national government and the European Union on issues affecting bus passengers and their representation, so the input of our local contacts and local groups will be essential to ensure we truly represent the views and concerns of passengers nationwide.

As Passenger Focus moves into gear it may be that BUS USERS UK's role will change. A further issue is the effect of the economic downturn on our income, which comes from fees from individual and corporate members. We have been able to increase our staff numbers and, I believe, our effectiveness with a predictable level of income over the past few years. I recognise that this could change and we shall adapt the organisation to give passengers the best value within whatever funding may be available to us.

We continue to be concerned about the confusion that surrounds the English concessionary travel scheme for over-60s. The various concession schemes across the UK give older people a new freedom and an opportunity to get out and enjoy the country. Our concern is the inconsistency of the English scheme both in terms of the differences in starting times and travel entitlement, and in the reimbursement paid to bus companies for carrying concession card holders. Without adequate recompense, many operators are considering service and frequency cuts as the payments they receive from some authorities are insufficient to cover the commercial costs of providing some journeys. We welcomed the Welsh and Scottish schemes with their clarity and consistency, with operators receiving a realistic reimbursement for every passenger carried. We urge DfT to revisit this matter to avoid the confusion that clearly exists.

The achievements of BUS USERS UK are down to the small but dedicated team who work on behalf of members. In England we have Phil Tonks, operations officer, supported by Susan Dawson and Chris Dale at Stoke, and in Wales Margaret Everson and Barclay Davies, supported by Bethan Davies. Stephen Morris, external affairs officer is supported by Sylvia Lunn at Shepperton, and our faithful treasurer, Stephen Le Bras, provides financial control and advice. Julian Osborne has joined our ranks, initially as a human resources advisor, but has taken on a wider role, with a vital input into strengthening our internal systems to meet the challenges of the immediate future, and in the background our president, Caroline Cahm, enjoys semiretirement, while still providing support and advice.

Gavin Booth
Chairman

BUS USERS UK
Chairman Gavin Booth

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2. BUS USERS UK work in Scotland
Gavin Booth, chairman of BUS USERS UK, is a member of the Bus Passengers' Platform, the statutory body set up by the Scottish Government to consider complaints that have not been dealt with satisfactorily. He represents BUS USERS UK on the Bus Action Plan Task Group, which is charged with developing the National Transport Strategy, and on Transport Scotland's Strategic Transport Projects Review Reference Group.

He continues to carry out Quality Audits on bus services and passenger facilities throughout Scotland and meets with bus operators, local authorities, transport consultants and other interest groups, and addresses conferences and public meetings on behalf of bus passengers.

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3. BUS USERS UK work in Wales
Welsh Assembly Government funding for the activity of BUS
USERS UK Cymru was awarded for two years from 1 April 2006,
and was renewed in April 2008. Funding is based on the
following key outputs:

• To gather and reflect the views of bus passengers in Wales n To provide a contact point for all bus user complaints in Wales
• To develop and maintain a database of bus passenger complaints in Wales
• To organise and manage the delivery of bus passenger surgeries in Wales
• To provide an advice service to local authorities and bus operators in Wales
• To improve responses to passenger views and to improve service delivery
• To provide advice as required to the National Assembly for Wales and Ministers of the Welsh Assembly Government, both directly and through the Welsh Transport Forum, on strategic and technical developments related to bus transport

The funding bid set out key annual targets for handling 400 complaints, organising 12 surgeries and attending 10 strategic meetings and five ATCO meetings. During 2008 BUS USERS UK Cymru handled 393 written complaints, though some 400 further complaints were referred to operators/local authorities. We also get about 80 calls a year regarding lost property. During 2008 there were 13 surgeries in Wales (see separate Surgeries section).

Local representatives
BUS USERS UK Cymru has eight local representatives operating on an hourly-paid casual basis. They are the eyes and ears of the Welsh organisation and provide regular local newspaper cuttings to ensure that we are aware of local issues, and can respond accordingly.

They are:
John Richards, North Wales Central
Joyce Porter, Ceredigion
Paul Harley, Newport/Cardiff/ SW Valleys
Jim Maggs, Swansea/Neath/ Port Talbot
Judi Hartland, Pembrokeshire
Richard Paramor, Snowdonia/ Lleyn Peninsular
Greg Varney, Powys
Joyce North, Denbighshire/Flintshire

The local representatives have engaged themselves in many local issues, drawing problems to the attention of operators or local authorities. In Colwyn Bay, John Richards has been active in his involvement with various agencies seeking ways of dealing effectively with bus stop parking. He also works closely with Age Concern. Bearing in mind that 30-40% of bus users are concessionary pass holders this is a relationship on which BUS USERS UK Cymru has started to build, to discuss ways in which we can work together.

Other organisations with which we work in Wales

Traveline Cymru
It is helpful that we share office accommodation in Cardiff with Traveline Cymru. Immediate access to pending timetable changes helps give us a set of checks and balances in trying to gauge the impact of network changes. The Traveline Cymru call centre takes complaints from users and can pass these to us as well as to the operator.

Consumer representative bodies.
BUS USERS UK Cymru has, from its neutral position, been able to work in other areas for the benefit of users. Public transport cuts across very many areas of life and forging wider links has served us well.

Welsh Consumer Council
Working alongside the Welsh Consumer Council on various matters has given us a better understanding of a wider range of consumer issues and conversely has given us opportunity to address the Welsh Consumer Organisations Forum on our work in Wales. We aim to build on this relationship as time progresses and seek also to develop links with Citizens Advice Bureaus and the Trading Standards organisations. Understanding how other consumer organisations function has helped us focus on our own ability to represent users.

Age Concern Cymru
We are working to establish links within Age Concern, building on the successful partnership forged by John Richards in North Wales. As a large percentage of bus users are above pensionable age, there are a number of areas where we share common interests. We are looking at placing information in forthcoming Age Concern newsletters and giving presentations to various groups.

Passenger Focus
We work alongside the Passenger Focus passenger link manager for Wales to promote public transport usage and consult at a strategic level. A significant number of passenger journeys encompass both bus and rail.

Police
Recognising the importance of public transport safety and security we are pleased to work with the Welsh Police Forces and British Transport Police to develop the Bobbies on Buses scheme and work continues to develop a best practice incident reporting scheme. This builds on the work we have done within STOP (Safer Travel on Public Transport).

Traffic Commissioner
We have regular meetings with Welsh Traffic Commissioner Nick Jones and his officers to discuss a wide range of issues. VOSA bus compliance officers attend most of our surgeries, which assists them in meeting various bus company personnel, and they can gain at first hand an insight into issues users have in a particular area.

Welsh Assembly Government.
BUS USERS UK Cymru works closely with Welsh Assembly Government staff and is regularly asked to comment on matters of policy development and also to take up complaints that have been lodged with the Welsh Assembly Government about bus services. Our presence has also been brought to the attention of Assembly Members and we have been pleased to meet several of them over the course of time and discuss areas of mutual concern. We have also been delighted to meet Ieuan Wyn Jones AM Deputy First Minister and Minister for Economy & Transport, to discuss a wide range of issues.

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4.Surgeries
One of the main forums in which BUS USERS UK works is that of bus users' surgeries. Surgeries are undertaken in partnership with bus operators and local authorities to enable members of the public to meet their local bus service providers. This creates an invaluable dialogue and often highlights issues which do not otherwise come to bus operators' attention. It also gives bus users a unique opportunity to 'tell it as it is' directly to the decision makers who affect their journeys, and also to gain some insight into the problems of running bus services.

In most years we run a specific surgery programme covering most major locations in the West Midlands, though due to major changes affecting the internal workings of the main bus operator in the area this programme stalled in 2008, apart from our annual Birmingham surgery in September. Whilst it is back on track for 2009, it opened up an opportunity to build on a growing relationship with Worcestershire County Council with a programme of surgeries there.

Nonetheless we were kept busy elsewhere. We also worked more closely with Transdev and successful surgeries in Blackburn and Harrogate resulted, with hopefully more to come in the areas in which Transdev works in 2009.

Once again our funding in Wales enabled us to run a comprehensive programme there and plans are in place to expand our English surgery activities in 2009, with addition staff resources being made available for it. We also had some input into a surgeries programme undertaken by Greater Manchester PTE in a number of towns and cities in its area. Meanwhile Phil Tonks, our Operations Officer for England, is also working on a pilot scheme in his native West Midlands with the major bus operators and Centro-PTA to enhance the existing surgery programme and link it more closely to existing work by Centro through their Transport User Forums.

Whilst surgeries in England are held aboard buses, usually supplied by local operators, those in Wales are often held in suitable public buildings or bus stations. However for the Swansea surgery, First lent us one of their impressive ftr vehicles, due to enter service in Swansea in 2009. Conversely the surgery in Maidstone, organised by Kent County Council though attended by BUS USERS UK, was held in the shopping centre.

We were able to expand our surgeries programme compared with 2007; during 2008 we held 28 surgeries, in:

• Barry, 28 February
  
• Birmingham, 18 September
  
• Blackburn, 15 October
  
• Blackwood, 17 June
  
• Brecon, 4 March
  
• Bridgend, 14 May
  
• Bristol, 26 November
  
• Cardiff, 18 September
  
• Chichester, 21 May
  
• Crawley, 31 January
  
• Dolgellau, 11 December
  
• Harrogate, 17 October
  
• Horsham, 11 July
  
• Kidderminster, 25 April
  
• Llandudno, 1 August
  
• Llangollen & Corwen, 4 July
  
• Maidstone, 18 September
  
• Malvern, 26 September
  
• Mold, 8 April
  
• Newport, 25 November
  
• Northampton, 13 August
  
• Norwich, 22 February
  
• Reading, 31 July
  
• Redditch, 29 February
  
• Swansea, 23 October
  
• Telford, 23 September
  
• Worcester, 25 January
  
• Wrexham, 14 November

In view of Passenger Focus's requirement for an evidence-led approach we developed a new recording system to track issues being raised by passengers. Not surprisingly, the greatest single cause for complaint is service reliability, although requests for more service in the evenings and weekends are close behind. Challenging some perceptions, the biggest single category is people who are pleased with the service, at just over 12.75% of attendees.

Surgery in full swing in Reading

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5.External affairs
External Affairs Officer Stephen Morris has continued to produce our quarterly magazine Bus User during 2008, but has increased his hours with us to help with other issues. Development of our proposed new nationwide structure has been suspended as the Local Transport Act has had new implications for BUS USERS UK. Instead we have been actively involved in discussions with ministers, both Rosie Winterton and her successor Paul Clark, and Civil Servants at the Department for Transport over the development of Bus Passenger Champion's role and in liaison with Passenger Focus to understand our respective roles in the future and help to inform Passenger Focus on dealing with bus passengers.

Stephen Morris remains BUS USERS UK's representative on the Bus Appeals Body and Journey Solutions, but the Concessionary Fares Stakeholder Panel has now done its job and is effectively disbanded.

Press campaigns in 2008 centred on the role of the Bus Passengers Champion and also included issues such as the restructuring of BSOG (Bus Service Operators' Grant) and Greater Manchester's TIF (Transport Investment Fund) Bid.

Submissions were also made on DfT Consultations on BSOG and the future arrangements for Voluntary Partnership Agreements, in addition to that on the form the Bus Passenger Champion should take.

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6.Financial matters
2008 was a year of transition between the old regime dating from the Transport Act 1985 and the new post 2008 Transport Act position. Once again, our supporters in the industry have been able to keep up their financial assistance, although the ongoing recession has already adversely affected all areas of the national economy.

Our overall income outside Wales rose from £117,500 to £130,000, of which around half had been collected by the end of the year with the rest to follow. The two-year subscription continued to be popular with members and helped cash flow. We branched out into mystery passenger audits which will bring in the extra revenue required to fund the additional expenditure as our activities are increased.

The costs of additional personnel and office accommodation contributed to a rise in expenditure from £95,000 to almost £147,000. The net effect has been to turn a surplus of £21,000 into a deficit of £17,000.

In Wales, we agree our budget with the Welsh Assembly Government and they meet our expenses in full. The current budgetary period ends in the Spring and we hope that the current arrangement will be continued.

2009 will be a turning point as we will be more involved with the Government's preferred choice of Passenger Focus, the rail passengers' champion. I should like to hope that our supporters in the industry as well as the grass roots bus users will find plenty of interesting activities with which they can become fully supportive.

Stephen le Bras, our treasurer.

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7. Internal restructuring
During the year we acquired new rented office accommodation in Shepperton, which has been the home base for Bus User magazine since 2000. We have employed an admin assistant, Sylvia Lunn, in Shepperton, and towards the end of the year the individual membership function was transferred from Stoke to Shepperton.

As well as administering everything to do with the magazine, other External Affairs functions and the membership database, Sylvia coordinates our Mystery Passenger work, and has undertaken some of it herself, and has attended surgeries. She is also compiling a comprehensive database of matters arising from surgeries in England to improve our understanding of passenger concerns.

Stoke is now concentrating on complaints handling and liaison with member groups, while Susan Dawson, based at Stoke, is also developing a new role in surgeries.

At the same time our human resources consultant, Julian Osborne, has expanded his remit and has been overseeing our internal systems with a view to ensuring our interface with Passenger Focus functions effectively. He too has also taken on a role in surgeries in England. We move into 2009 with better-developed systems and a greater capacity to undertake surgeries. Meanwhile he and Phil Tonks have worked hard behind the scenes to strengthen our links with local contacts and groups, work which in 2008 was very much 'behind the scenes', but which will bear fruit in 2009.

Sylvia Lunn has taken over
as membership secretary

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8. Improved representation
Phil Tonks, Operations Officer for England, has been developing our local contacts network during the year, and this is now at a point where it is giving us useful eyes and ears on the ground in much of the country. It is still a 'work in progress', but we now have a much more comprehensive network of volunteers ready to advise us on local issues, help with the surgeries programme and to give us a wider view for the various Parliamentary Consultations we are expecting in 2009 on the future direction of bus passenger representation.

We are also forging closer links than hitherto with local organisations.

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9. Handling complaints
Bus Users UK handles a steady stream of complaints from bus users each year. Some of these complaints can be resolved without much trouble, but not all of them are as easy to deal with and the most difficult to resolve get passed on to the Bus Appeals Body (qv). This year just 26 were referred on. Chris Dale handles the English complaints from the Stoke office and Barclay Davies and his Welsh team handle the Welsh complaints in Cardiff.

526 complaints passed through the Stoke office during 2008, with 393 being handled in Wales. Quite a number of the English complaints during the year were involved with difficulties surrounding the introduction of the English National Concessionary Pass, but these no longer appear to be such a great problem.

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10.Bus Appeals Body
Cases which cannot easily be dealt with by BUS USERS UK are passed on to the Bus Appeals Body, which BUS USERS UK operates in partnership with the bus operators' trade association the Confederation of Passenger Transport (CPT). However in 2008 the number of cases passed to the Bus Appeals Body fell dramatically, as more were dealt with by complaints officer Chris Dale without having to refer them on to the BAB.

During 2008 Bus Appeals Body handled only 26 cases, of which just four related to operators outside the Big Five transport groups, one of which escaped reference altogether. Just two cases were found in the operator's favour, although a notable trend this year was that a number of cases were resolved satisfactorily by the operators prior to BAB issuing its decision.

We were saddened this year by the death in November of the BAB chairman Lord Hogg of Cumbernauld after a battle with cancer, during which he remained actively involved as far as possible. BUS USERS UK paid tribute to Lord Hogg as 'a genial and very fair chairman, with a good understanding of bus passenger issues. He took a commonsense view of appeals, but insisted on a high standard of debate.' Lord Hogg was 70. His successor is Lord Snape of Wednesbury

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11.Commercial Activities
Our Quality Audit programme was activated during 2008. Developed from the Good Practice Guide, of which we published an acclaimed new edition in 2007, this programme is available to bus service providers who require an objective, warts-and-all, audit of the whole passenger experience. It was piloted in 2008 with four companies from the Go-Ahead Group, one of which has redesigned timetables as a direct result and one of which has asked for on-going input from us to help address some of the issues raised.

Other operators are expected to come on board in 2009, and during 2008 one Passenger Transport Executive also engaged our services to assess its information provision and infrastructure, demonstrating the adaptability of the programme. The programme is already proving a valuable source of income for BUS USERS UK and at the same time enables our officers to widen their experience of operations in different parts of the country

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12.BUS USERS UK – who are we?
BUS USERS UK, formerly known as the National Federation of Bus Users, is an independent group which was formed to give bus passengers a voice. We have the ear of all the major bus companies and a lot of the smaller ones too, of their trade organisation and of the Government and local authorities. BUS USERS UK is not aligned to any political party

We aim:

• To strengthen the voice of bus users in the discussion of public
  transport issues
  
• To increase the influence of bus passengers on local and national decisions affecting bus services
  
• To develop good communication between bus companies and their passengers
  
• We organise local bus users surgeries, where passengers can get to talk
  to their bus managers and local government officers, tell them what they think — and hear their viewpoint, too
  
• We help with local problems, both for individuals and for groups
  
• We are represented on the Bus Appeals Body
  
• We encourage and promote good practice in the bus industry

President: Dr Caroline Cahm MBE PhD
Chairman: Gavin Booth
Operations Officer: Phil Tonks
Treasurer: Stephen Le Bras
Senior Officer for Wales: Margaret Everson
Officer for Wales: Barclay Davies
External Affairs Officer: Stephen Morris
Office Administrator, Stoke: Susan Dawson
Membership Secretary: Sylvia Lunn
Office Administrator, Wales: Bethan Davies

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