List of axed Cambridgeshire bus routes to receive new bids is released
The list of axed bus routes to have received new bids from bus operators has been released - but there is no guarantee that buses will stick to the original timetables.
Of the 18 services that Stagecoach announced would be cut by the end of October, 14 have received tenders from operators, along with all of the five reduced services.
The Board of the Cambridgeshire & Peterborough Combined Authority has been recommended by its officers to agree to new contracts with bus operators to continue services which Stagecoach East announced would be withdrawn from October 30.
But commuters will not yet be able to find out whether those services will continue to stop in their villages and some stops may be dropped.
According to the Combined Authority, the bus routes and timetables cannot be published for legal reasons because timetables may change as a result of the tendering process. It is also not yet able to confirm which bus operators are the preferred bidder for each route.
Operators and new timetables will be confirmed at the end of what is called a "standstill period" lasting 10 days. This is a legal requirement attached to this tendering process which allows suppliers an opportunity to challenge any decision. That means the names of the bus operators and timetables can only be made public from October 24.
Mayor Dr Nik Johnson said: “This tendering process was entered into with the intention of saving as many services as possible and, so far, operators have been found for most of the routes, which is very encouraging.
“A small number of routes so far have no operator willing to take them on, despite us having funds available. We will continue to work with bus operators to see if we can plug these remaining gaps.
“The Combined Authority Board will make a decision on these services, but I am certainly very supportive of the outcomes of this tendering process. I know from all correspondence I’ve received just how much of an impact this decision by Stagecoach has had on people. There has been a widespread concern across the region to get something done to keep these bus routes going and that’s what the Combined Authority is working hard to achieve.
“People will understandably want to know timetables and names of bus operators, and I also understand people want to make plans for journeys after October 30. We are obliged to follow a sound legal process and that does unfortunately mean more detail won’t be available until Monday (October 24), but we will be sharing that information as soon as we have it.”
“The bigger picture is that we are working on a longer term Bus Strategy which will seek to deliver a sustainable bus network, that is high quality, affordable, reliable and accessible to people right across the region. The status quo is not meeting people’s needs, and that’s why change is needed.”
On September 20, Stagecoach East announced they were pulling out of 18 services completely and reducing a further 5 significantly. Combined Authority Mayor Dr Nik Johnson admitted he had been warned of plans to slash bus routes as far back as June this year and was given the final list in August. The routes went out to tender with potential operators on September 21, the day after Stagecoach's public announcement of the cuts.
The report to the Board, which also focuses on a wider Bus Strategy for the region, states the current position which is that 14 of the 18 services cut by Stagecoach, along with all of the five reduced services, have all received tenders from new operators.
The priority now is for the Combined Authority to understand how best to provide services for the communities on the four routes where bids have not been received, or only partially covered.
Currently, routes where no bids have come in are the 23 and 24 from Queensgate to Lynch Wood, Peterborough, the 915 from Royston to Cambridge and part of service 39 running from Chatteris to March. A verbal update on the latest situation will be provided to the Combined Authority Board on Wednesday (October 19). Discussions with operators about what they may be able to provide, even if this meets only part of the withdrawn route initially, are ongoing.
The routes, therefore, which have received tenders from bus operators are:
Citi4 along St Neots Road and within Cambourne
5A (Citi5 beyond Northstowe),
8A (Citi8 beyond Cottenham)
9A Ely City Service
11
12A
18
22A
25
29
30
33 March Town Service
35
66
V1
V2
V3
V4
V5
The Wednesday (October 19) Board meeting, chaired by Mayor Johnson, will make the final decision on whether to approve the new contracts which would keep services running until the end of March 2023.
The routes will require some of the £1.7m set aside by the Combined Authority for subsidies to operators to keep them running. The current position is that the total cost is expected to be about £1,076,658 to keep the services which have tenders running.
A statement from the Combined Authority said the funding is "very likely to be enough to cover all the routes, where there are operators with the capacity to run them".
The report to the board includes a wider update on the Combined Authority’s Bus Strategy work, which is the plan to invest in better buses across the region, which connect more people and places, and serve as an attractive alternative to the car.
Part of the Bus Strategy work involves the Combined Authority exploring more options for funding this new network, including further approaches to Government to make the case for additional resources. This also includes options for funding to keep any services going beyond the end of March 2023.
The Bus Strategy is due to be presented in draft form to the Transport and Infrastructure Committee in November. Alongside the bus strategy will be a new Bus Service Improvement Plan (BSIP) to be submitted to Government before the end of November. The objective of both is to set out a clear vision and direction, and a powerful case for investment in the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough bus system.
Work to develop further the business case for bus franchising also forms part of this wider strategy.
