Agenda item

Members are invited to interview receive the written response to questions and data requests and to carry out interviews with Michael Jennings, Area Head of Commercial, Arriva South.

The Chair welcomed to the meeting Michael Jennings, Area Head of Commercial for Arriva South, and Alec Bright, Arriva Network Manager for Stevenage.

The Chair asked a range of questions which were answered by Mr Jennings and included:

·         Mr Jennings agreed that electric buses were the future.

·         The main reasons why Arriva withdrew from the ZEBRA scheme were the impact of Covid and the financial implications from it. During Covid bus patronage reduced by three quarters and it was decided that Arriva couldn’t invest into Stevenage. Instead they did invest into a new depot.

·         Unfortunately there was no option to delay the government grant, as it was a take it or leave it offer and at the time during Covid it was not financially viable to invest into Stevenage. He hoped that another government grant would be available.

·         He highlighted that they needed more support and needed to replace a large portion of the fleet which would require a lot of large capital investment at once.

·         The ZEBRA bid was quick in becoming available and needed to be submitted quickly with awards being made on a large scale to small areas.

·         Arriva had introduced electric buses in Leicester and London, but there were no electric fleets currently in the Southeast.

·         He acknowledged that there was a problem with the current service and delivery was below where it should be. He highlighted some causes for this.

·         Staffing had been a big issue not only in Stevenage but across Hertfordshire. They were now fully staffed in Stevenage and had increased pay rates to £16 per hour. They had also increased starter rates and used agencies to fill any gaps in staffing.

·         The depot site had been another issue. Previously they had been operating from two sites which was difficult to manage. Now they are operating from one site with the correct facilities.

·         Another issue had been engineering which they were still having issues with. The current fleet was older, they had issues with getting engineering staff, and there was a lack of parts which took time to come in. He highlighted that they had an action plan which still had some way to go but they were moving forward in the right direction.

A Member asked a question regarding the average percentage of services operated and suggested this was not in line with the public perception of what had been operated. Mr Jennings agreed that the perception was negative, but it was often worse that what was operated. The impact from traffic, lack of drivers, and issues with engineering all contribute to late services and although some services were late, they still ran. He stated that ideally, they wanted to run at least 99% of services.

A Member asked a question regarding the monthly data that had been provided. Mr Jennings advised that the variations in the monthly data was affected by various factors such as school holidays, bank holidays, or how many weekends there were in a certain month.

Another Member asked why there were recruitment issues. Mr Jennings advised that there had been a challenge with drives and engineers and had been seen across the entire bus sector not just Arriva and there were lots of reasons for this. Covid had a significant impact on this due to lifestyle changes, delayed operations, and the market changing. Brexit was also another issue as they cannot recruit from overseas anymore. They had made the job more attractive by investing in the depot and facilities, changing schedules and increasing pay rates.

A few Members asked questions about the communications through the website, app and twitter, as well as the real time information infrastructure. Mr Jennings advised that the website was good at showing the timetable, but there was a challenge in showing what was actually operating. The app gave live updates and showed what was operating but there were still limitations. Some last-minute changes aren’t updated as quick. The Department for Transport had pushed for open data so other websites can access and track the data and show real time information. The real time information infrastructure was down to Hertfordshire County Council. Mr Bright also added that they had a red list of journeys that should operate daily and would take priority, for example the first or last journeys of the day.

Some Members asked questions in relation to operations in other areas such as London or Leicester. Mr Jennings advised that having electric buses in London was slightly different as Transport for London pay to operate services. Leicester also had a different market and was stronger therefore was also a good candidate for an electric fleet. Stevenage pre-covid had a strong market but it had decreased post-covid. It was also currently hard to gain investments and the business wouldn’t be sustainable if an electric fleet was introduced into Stevenage. In terms of general performance there had been a mixed picture nationally and there were only a few areas which showed excellent performance. There have been major lifestyle changes in recent years, such as working from home, which changed how many people used the service. Mr Jennings didn’t think bus usage would return to pre-covid levels and this was a national issue. 

A few Members asked questions regarding the aging fleet in Stevenage and the use of biodiesel. Mr Jennings advised that electric vehicles were a lot more expensive and wouldn’t replace diesel vehicles like for like. The biggest challenge was missed funding opportunities during covid and without funding they were more likely to get more diesel vehicles, but they already use biodiesel. They were looking nationally at what they can do to bring buses in as there was a link between the age of buses and their environmental impact. The oldest vehicle running in Stevenage was 14 years old (with two 19-year-old buses just taken out the fleet) and the average age of the fleet was 12.5 years with vehicles ranging between 9-14 years. Mr Bright added that if any investment opportunities did come towards Hertfordshire, it would come towards Stevenage. This was due to the age of the fleet as well as the potential in Stevenage.

A Member asked whether there had been an effect from the £2 fare cap. Mr Jennings advised that this had increased patronage by a small amount, and they had seen the most use from longer journeys.

A few Members asked questions regarding the practicality of electric buses within Stevenage, and it was advised:

·         There were pinch points, and the biggest challenge was getting buses moving faster.

·         Haycroft Road was a tight road where buses had issues, as well as roads such as Chertsey Rise were not designed for buses but remained as they were strong routes.

·         Main roads and dual carriageways were good.

·         There weren’t problems all day, but certain areas at certain times.

·         Parking was also an issue.

·         They try to get buses into new developments and communicate with the developers and local councils.

·         The issue with new developments was that most people who buy houses in new developments have cars and don’t use buses.

·         The key to new developments was to build them with buses in mind, for example no speed bumps or wider roads.

·         Some developments have tight turns that make it difficult for buses to travel the route. Ideally providing buses through Section 106 and having developments account for buses help.

·         The depot was built in mind with electric vehicle charging. Ideally the buses would be charged overnight and topped up during the day.

·         An electric bus can travel 180-200 miles on one charge but won’t last all day.

·         They could opportunity charge and charge at the end of the route.

·         Technology needs to improve so bus batteries can last all day.

A Member asked what local authorities could do to make it easier for commercial providers to provide local services. Mr Jennings advised that as a commercial operator it was key to react and address quickly. Issues arise when there was a problem they cannot address, local authorities are slow to react. He also added that town vitality was key. Stevenage needs to be an attractive destination for a variety of people such as employers and shoppers. Mr Bright added that Stevenage had always been pro-bus and was one of the best towns for buses in Hertfordshire. However, it was getting harder with traffic and most households owning cars.

A Member suggested that cutting fares and increasing service would make more people use buses. Mr Jennings advised that if they increased frequency they would carry more, and if they reduced fares they would carry more. However, if they doubled the frequency, they wouldn’t carry double the passengers, but it would still cost double to run.

A Member asked questions regarding the accessibility of the bus service. Mr Jennings advised that the entire fleet was fully wheelchair accessible, and some bus stops are. The next step was to make all bus stops accessible but that was down to Hertfordshire County Council. Operators are doing things locally to see what accessibility looks like and this was needed from the Department for Transport. All destination screens were electronic, and the next step was to add announcements for next stops. The Scrutiny Officer also added that they had feedback from a Hertfordshire group who work with people who are visually impaired. They raised issues around how they view boards, etc. Mr Jennings added that more work needed to be done but they had done things over the years to help understand different issues, such as guide dogs.

The Chair thanked Mr Jennings and Mr Bright for their contribution to the meeting.