A formal warning has been issued to Stagecoach North West for its failure to operate bus services in Cumbria.
The warning was issued following a public inquiry and DVSA investigation into the bus operator – which found the firm was failing to operate certain of its registered bus services in Cumbria without a reasonable excuse.
Services under scrutiny included:
- The 5 North Scale to Barrow
- The 30 Maryport to Thornhill,
- The 50 Moorclose to Workington
- The X5 Workington to Penrith
- The 685 Brampton to Hexham
Complaints were made about the bus services from the public and Parliament last year, which led to a DVSA investigation which took place from December 2023 and March.
The public inquiry took place on April 30 in Golborne, Warrington by Fiona Harrison, Deputy Traffic Commissioner for North England.
Traffic Commissioners are responsible for the licensing and regulation of local bus services. They are assisted by Deputy Traffic Commissioners, who often manage public inquiries and can sanction underperforming operators.
There are several decisions a Traffic Commissioner can make from a formal warning to revocation of a bus operators licence.
Tom Waterhouse managing director of Stagecoach North West and David Rich, its head of commercial services and a transport manager attended the enquiry.
The firm was represented by James Backhouse of Backhouse Jones, Solicitors.
At the inquiry, Stagecoach North West explained to Mrs Harrison that it had faced region-specific issues that contribute to lost mileage and punctuality issues.
These included driver availability and a shortage of skilled mechanics to repair and maintain its fleet.
As part of the investigation, Stagecoach North West provided the DVSA with data to create a score to provide an overall picture of service punctuality.
Bus services in England have a ‘window of tolerance’ for late services which aims to account for day-to-day problems which operators have to account for.
With the window of tolerance in place, bus operators must hit the punctuality target of 95 per cent – meaning with a reasonable excuse, operators can be up to one minute early and up to five minutes late 95 per cent of the time.
The figures Stagecoach North West presented were less than the 95 per cent punctuality target.
Mrs Harrison said: “In the case of this operator, it is also subject to region-specific additional factors, particularly concerning driver and skilled mechanic recruitment and retention that it has been actively addressing, additional to fleet investment, with demonstrated improvements achieved.
“I found the steps described as taken and being taken by the operator to address these particular issues affecting this region, as well as substantial investment in new vehicles, to be compelling and consistent with an operator taking reasonable steps to address the problems it has identified through its own various continuous methods of performance monitoring.”
Mrs Harrison added that a number of complaints had been received on the bus services under scrutiny which she found to have been thoroughly investigated by Stagecoach North West.
The bus operator’s investigation found that the majority of complaints derived from one main complainant using a database source which was flawed for technical reasons, making the complaints factually unfounded.
There were, however, a number of remaining complaints received from actual travelling passengers using the monitored services, including in particular service 685, which runs from Carlisle to Newcastle, whilst operating between Haltwhistle and Hexham, which were substantiated on investigation.
Mrs Harrison added: “The operator has positively addressed the concerns raised, through for example on the 685 service with timetable changes and only using double decked buses, with improved punctuality on the route concerned, to be kept under review.”
While the commissioner described performance figures achieved as disappointing, she said improvement steps were being taken.
She added that substantial investment into new vehicles and other steps being taken to improve services were compelling and consistent with an operator working to address problems it has identified through its own methods of performance monitoring.
Mrs Harrison said she had been left with no doubt that Stagecoach North West took the matter of service provision very seriously and acknowledges that the viability of its business required the ongoing patronage of its customers for whom affordability and reliability are key performance indicators.
She added that the bus operator was therefore motivated and committed to achieving customer satisfaction and meeting customer needs – and that with the planned improvements ahead, bus service improvements will be made in the next 18 months.
She added: “In making this decision whilst I am satisfied that the operator has on occasions failed to comply with certain of its registered services, ‘without reasonable excuse’, I find that this is not a case where the imposition of any penalty or sanction is needed to focus the mind of this operator.”
The decision notice added that if in future, substantial and substantiated complaints were received from passengers using the registered local services provided by this operator, or their elected representatives, a new monitoring exercise by the DVSA will be carried out.
A Stagecoach spokesman said: “We have received the decision from the Traffic Commissioner and have been working hard to improve services across Cumbria. We have made significant progress in the last eight weeks, and our services are now operating at their most reliable level since Covid.
“We are committed to working with our local authority partners to ensure these improvements continue and are sustained.”
