Agenda item

To submit a report by the Head of Highways, Waste and Property Services.

The report of the Head of Highways, Waste and Property is respect of the Bus Emergency Scheme was presented for the Executive’s consideration. The report set out the wider context, the background to and reasons for the Bus Emergency Scheme (BES) and sought the Executive’s agreement to sign up to the BES2 scheme.

Councillor R.G.Parry, OBE, FRAgS, Portfolio Member for Highways, Waste and Property introduced the report and provided background information stating that Welsh Government (WG) and local authorities have been providing financial support for the bus services sector to help deal with reduced revenue and increased costs due to the impact of Covid-19. Prior to the pandemic WG had consulted on a range of proposed changes to the way bus services are delivered in Wales and had indicated that it wanted to see the public sector having greater influence over service networks, ticketing and integration with rail services; WG is also looking to link the short term survival of operators to the longer reform of the sector. In the short term the funding to keep operators afloat is therefore being provided with a number of conditions attached. These are to incentivise operators to engage in planned changes that are in line with their longer term ambitions for reform. WG made £29m available from a Hardship Fund which operated from April, 2002 for three months, after which the Bus Emergency Scheme was introduced in July to provide ongoing support (BES1) with expectations that operators would contribute to a reshaping of bus services in Wales. BES 1.5 was introduced in August, 2020 administered by lead Authorities (Flintshire in the case of North Wales) and this provided £10m of ramp up funding to support the reopening of schools and economic activity. BE 1.5 was then extended to the end of March, 2021 following the announcement of a further support package in September, 2020 with operators being asked to sign up to a range of terms and conditions to access the funding.

WG working with Transport for Wales are now proposing to enter into a longer term BES2 agreement with operators and local authorities to protect services. The agreement will operate for an initial maximum term of up to 2 years from the date  BES 1.5 commenced i.e. up until July 2022 unless market conditions recover sufficiently for an operator to no longer require BES support be that for commercial or contracted services. WG will be a co-signatory to the BES2 agreement with bus operators along with Transport for Wales. Local Authorities retain legal responsibilities for bus services and therefore remain central to determining which local services receive this support. They need to sign up to the principle of the agreement and the relationship with their Lead Authority in ensuring that the ongoing emergency funding meets their priorities and is delivered on their behalf. This will provide the legal basis for WG to make payment to the operators. Key features of BES2 are summarised in the report and the full proposed Agreement is set out in Appendix 2 to the report.

The Head of Highways, Waste and Property Services highlighted the importance of supporting the sector both in the interests of the Authority’s key workers and for the recovery post-Covid and said that although the funding does not specifically cover education transport it is essential in terms of helping bus operators survive the current crisis and remain solvent thereby ensuring their availability for education transport in the future. He advised that signing up to BES2 will not commit the Authority to any management model in future as this will be subject to further discussions; neither does it mean extra funding for more buses – rather it is funding to help operators continue during the current crisis and with this in mind Welsh Government has been asked to clarify the arrangements for monitoring.

Councillor Carwyn Jones, Portfolio Member for Economic Development and Major Projects welcomed the scheme pointing out that bus services provide a lifeline for rural areas meaning that supporting those services is therefore essential. He referred to the Seiriol Alliance which runs a successful minibus  service and is keen to provide a community service for the area’s more rural villages ; he sought clarity regarding how such a service might be supported in future and in particular Welsh Government’s perspective on community transport provision.

The Head of Highways, Waste and Property Services advised that the BES2 agreement is specifically aimed at supporting current operators through the pandemic crisis. However, as part of further intended reforms of how bus services are managed in Wales to which the report alludes, the Authority has already expressed an interest in trialling Demand Responsive Transport (DRT) in Holyhead and in the Seiriol area. Whilst the trial scheme in Holyhead is more likely to proceed first because of the way commercial contracts with operators work, the Authority remains mindful of the options in the Seiriol ward especially in areas beyond Beaumaris.

It was resolved –

·        To agree to the principles of the BES2 agreement (Appendix 2 to the report) to secure (conditional) financial support for the bus sector and to establish a relationship with their regional lead authority and signatory, that ensures that the ongoing emergency funding meets the authority’s priorities and is delivered on its behalf.

·        To call for a further report on bus reform proposals relating to the future management of bus services in Wales.