It seems that Centro and Birmingham City are looking to set up a Statutory Quality Partnership in Birmingham City Centre to ban the 'Bus Bandits.'
http://www.connectedcity.org.uk/projects/birmingham_statutory_quality_partnership_agreement
The full consultation document (on the left hand menu) has the details, but in summary, if this were to go ahead, services that have to comply would have to do the following:
http://www.connectedcity.org.uk/projects/birmingham_statutory_quality_partnership_agreement
The full consultation document (on the left hand menu) has the details, but in summary, if this were to go ahead, services that have to comply would have to do the following:
- Participate in local multimodal ticketing and Plusbus and have signs displaying this
- Be fitted with transponders compatible with the local Real Time Information system
- Services must operate with low-floor or otherwise accessible buses
- Meet minimum Euro standards as specified
- Display the route number and destination on the front
- Clean buses inside and outside with no bad smells
- An ''appropriate'' livery to identify either the route or bus company
- Vehicles must not be in the livery of an alternative operator, or display their branding anywhere
- Contact details for the bus operator internally on the vehicle
- No vehicles left without a driver inside the zone
- Engines to be switched off after 2 Mins of remaining stationary (except where technical requirements prevent this)
- Provide Centro with their fleet lists every quarter
- High standards of drivers
- Drivers must wear a uniform
- Drivers must have training on ticketing and the requirements of the scheme