robertclark125
Established Member
For those who have an interest in Scottish bus services (me included), you may well know that last week, at a hearing in Edinburgh, the Scottish Traffic Commissioner revoked the operators licence of Bankfoot Buses, of Perth, and banned the firm, and its directors, from holding an O licence, for three years.
Bankfoot started running services in 2007, with a service between the Perthshire village of Bankfoot, and Perth, partly competing with stagecoach in Perth. Stagecoach responded with a new X24 service, from Pitlochry to Perth, paralelling the bankfoot - Perth service of Bankfoot. BB later launched a Perth citybus operation, and started a route there, using ex Chester Dennis Darts.
Later in 2008, BB started a free service for the Xmas period between Letham and Perth, and offered mulled wine on the service as well.
A new perth city service was launched in 2009, to compete with Stagecoach in Perth, and this is where the TC comes in.
At a hearing in Edinburgh on 9th April, Bankfoot were called to attend and explain their actions. No one turned up from the firm, so the hearing went ahead in their absence. The TC had evidence that Bankfoot buses was using a bus in an almost identical livery to that of Stagecoach, with a fleetname of Stagecoach, thus making it out as a Stagecoach Bus, using almost identical uniforms to those of Stagecoach, using a forged vehicle licence, failed to display licence discs, failed to run routes, and also stopped buses at bus stops in Perth where it was not supposed to stop at, like a free for all.
So, the TC banned the firm and its directors fro 3 1/2 years, and fined it £1,650.
http://www.perthshireadvertiser.co....ed-bus-firm-misled-the-public-73103-23377176/
That link explains all.
But it doesn't end there. Read on for part two!
Bankfoot has now said it'll carry on running its service 22 for free, and ask passengers to make a donation on the bus. It'll give the donations to a local church resoration project in Stanley. It claims that it'll take more than officadom to stop it.
http://www.perthshireadvertiser.co....-says-it-ll-run-free-services-73103-23377180/
I have to say, having spoken to a mate who knows about buses, if they start looking for donations on board buses, that's collecting fares or money in some way, regardless of where it's going, or where they claim it's going. I suspect that the appeal will fail, but moreso, I suspect Bankfoot won't last very long, as no money coming in, means they can't buy fuel, pay their staff, or pay for repairs.
http://www.bankfootbuses.com/
That's their website. They find the ruling laughable? Running without proper documentation isn't laughable, and I ought to point out, you can't consume alcohol in the street or outwith licensed premises in Perth, so since when did a bus consittute licenced premises?
If Stagecoach had done all this, I bet Bankfoot would have made a big outcry. Once again, this is a sad example of small operators thinknig the road traffic acts only apply to the big groups, and not to them. Stagecoach has tried to clean up its act over the years. Just a pity others want to spoil things.
Bankfoot started running services in 2007, with a service between the Perthshire village of Bankfoot, and Perth, partly competing with stagecoach in Perth. Stagecoach responded with a new X24 service, from Pitlochry to Perth, paralelling the bankfoot - Perth service of Bankfoot. BB later launched a Perth citybus operation, and started a route there, using ex Chester Dennis Darts.
Later in 2008, BB started a free service for the Xmas period between Letham and Perth, and offered mulled wine on the service as well.
A new perth city service was launched in 2009, to compete with Stagecoach in Perth, and this is where the TC comes in.
At a hearing in Edinburgh on 9th April, Bankfoot were called to attend and explain their actions. No one turned up from the firm, so the hearing went ahead in their absence. The TC had evidence that Bankfoot buses was using a bus in an almost identical livery to that of Stagecoach, with a fleetname of Stagecoach, thus making it out as a Stagecoach Bus, using almost identical uniforms to those of Stagecoach, using a forged vehicle licence, failed to display licence discs, failed to run routes, and also stopped buses at bus stops in Perth where it was not supposed to stop at, like a free for all.
So, the TC banned the firm and its directors fro 3 1/2 years, and fined it £1,650.
http://www.perthshireadvertiser.co....ed-bus-firm-misled-the-public-73103-23377176/
That link explains all.
But it doesn't end there. Read on for part two!
Bankfoot has now said it'll carry on running its service 22 for free, and ask passengers to make a donation on the bus. It'll give the donations to a local church resoration project in Stanley. It claims that it'll take more than officadom to stop it.
http://www.perthshireadvertiser.co....-says-it-ll-run-free-services-73103-23377180/
I have to say, having spoken to a mate who knows about buses, if they start looking for donations on board buses, that's collecting fares or money in some way, regardless of where it's going, or where they claim it's going. I suspect that the appeal will fail, but moreso, I suspect Bankfoot won't last very long, as no money coming in, means they can't buy fuel, pay their staff, or pay for repairs.
http://www.bankfootbuses.com/
That's their website. They find the ruling laughable? Running without proper documentation isn't laughable, and I ought to point out, you can't consume alcohol in the street or outwith licensed premises in Perth, so since when did a bus consittute licenced premises?
If Stagecoach had done all this, I bet Bankfoot would have made a big outcry. Once again, this is a sad example of small operators thinknig the road traffic acts only apply to the big groups, and not to them. Stagecoach has tried to clean up its act over the years. Just a pity others want to spoil things.
