TheGrandWazoo
Veteran Member
Improved planning guidelines are no good if the bus operator chooses not to serve the new developments. In most cases this is unlikely, but the worry that the shiny new bus facilities might not have any buses would make any councellor pause to think of the electoral consequences.
As I pointed out Manchester has spent on bus infrastructure already, and what Bristol is doing tends to confirm my point that there's a limit to what local government can spend to improve deregulated bus services before hitting diminishing returns. Unlike Glasgow, Manchester hasn't done much to increase radial road capacity in recent years. BSOG and fuel duty are the hands of central government and Manchester has tried congestion charges once already.
I'd agree with the political will and the finance, but I still maintain that some sort of franchising system is a pre-condition for that to happen.
Overbussing happens when there is competition on a route, mostly to the disbenefit of the passenger. Underbussing may happen when there is no competition, also to the disbenefit of the passenger.
The routes near to the busway illustrate how private operators concentrate on the most profitable routes leaving the others to wither, thus taking out one layer of a network that should be accessible to nearly everyone living in an urban area. To some extent that gap can be plugged with tendered services, but they are unlikely to be integrated with the core routes so those relying on them will probably face poor connections and (unless eligible for ENCTS) higher fares.
In any sane transport policy there wouldn't be an intensive bus service (and 10min is still pretty intensive) using the same road as a tramway which cost the taxpayer millions to build. The decision should be made either to provide a high quality bus service or to re-plan the bus network to feed into the tramway and if necessary to provide through journeys on parallel roads instead. The first option is arguably possible under deregulation (as with Leigh) but the resulting route wouldn't be integrated with the rest of the transport network. The second requires some form of franchising.
Sorry but local authorities in Nottingham and Brighton have already shown that improving bus infrastructure is not pre-decated on franchising. How we use space in our cities isn't dependant on who runs the buses but how we seek to choose to that space. If you look at Danish social planning (bit of niche subject, I grant you), it is all about a holistic view to living. That includes a gradual weaning ourselves off the car addiction in various ways. Yes by improving public transport in various ways and also reining in public car usage. Copenhagen have reduced roadside car parking by 3% a year; Liverpool removes dedicated bus lanes. Not difficult to see who values their public transport and their cars.
And in Bristol, it's not that we've reached the limit of what can be done in a deregulated environment. That does mean we should have car parking spaces in peak hour bus lanes! The lack of regulation and enforcement is also shocking - watching buses trying to exit a bus lane into regular because its path is blocked by some UPS or DHL van has parked up, hazards on, to deliver some more plastic tat from China! That would happen come what may.
Overbussing on routes is largely confined to the past. Aside from places like West Lothian and Southampton, the usual challenge is that bus companies have either established local monopolies or sit in some non-aggression pact with their neighbours. These perceived savings aren't there and, as you acknowledge, commercial bus operations have already largely disappeared alongside the GM Busway. Such has been the abstraction of trade that the former parallel services have been pared back. The same is clear on other major corridors - the big money spinning routes that First had in north Manchester between Oldham and Manchester have been decimated by the tram (though I seem to recall someone trying to argue that they hadn't). Same with services along Washway Road towards Altrincham.
If I had any faith in our local politicians, I might be more pre-disposed to ideas of franchising. However, there's a lot of things that they have singularly failed to do. Go for the "low hanging fruit"..... nah, too easy to do that. Doesn't smack of "doing something".