Future of Transport Regulatory Review:Call for Evidence
Response from The TAS Partnership Ltd
The Department for Transport recently consulted on a number of topics in the context of its ‘Future of Mobility’ programme. This consultation focused on potential regulatory / legislative changes in respect of:
Micromobility – e-scooters, e-skateboards, Segways, monowheels, etc.
Flexible bus services – with a view to regulations and service registrations being brought up to date to match the latest technology
Mobility as a Service (MaaS) – looking at how the planning and management should be coordinated
Some wider issues including:
How to avoid excluding any groups within society from the benefits associated with innovation
How to trial new modes effectively and fairly
Who should be leading the local deployment of new mobility services
How the planning for change needs to think more about the needs of disabled people or risk adding to their exclusion
How to avoid democratic control of innovative transport development becoming the dead hand of local authority bureaucracy
Shifting the balance of regulation away from a job-creation exercise for regulators and towards the needs of the consumer
Our response called on our experience delivering a recent international benchmarking project on ‘Powered Personal Transport’, decades of involvement with planning and implementing demand-responsive transport services and our work developing Best Practice Guidance on Bus Partnerships for the Department for Transport.
For information about this or any other aspects of our work, email or call Sarah Huntley – sarah.huntley@taspartnership.com 01772 204988
https://taspartnership.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/Front_cover.jpg1219855Sarah Huntleyhttps://taspartnership.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/The-TAS-Partnership-Logo-Horizontal-Small-e1567169834623padding.pngSarah Huntley2020-07-09 15:55:402026-01-21 15:00:13Future of Transport Regulatory Review: Call for Evidence
First of all we hope that all our friends and colleagues across the UK and around the world can stay healthy during this unprecedented emergency. We are thinking of you.
Here at TAS we have the ability for all our staff to work from home whilst securely accessing our data and emails, so we do not anticipate any break of service. Calls to our landline are diverted to mobiles as necessary. We will maintain usual office hours.
We are in regular discussion with our local authority and operator clients about the new challenges that they are facing on a daily basis and have been assisting with ideas for changed policies, services and resource prioritisation as well as by drafting new procedures to help frontline staff. We have a particular interest in helping ensure that access opportunities are maintained for older and more vulnerable passengers or are replaced with alternative delivery and visiting services.
The simple message is that we are here and fully functional and available to help you.
In the coming days we will be putting more information on our website covering Covid-19 issues and look forward to hearing from everyone with the challenges and successes of overcoming the threat that this virus constitutes.
TAS National Bus Fares Survey Highlights Push away from Cash Payments
Rapid roll-out of Contactless payment and an average of 2.6% discount for purchasing an M-Ticket over a paper ticket indicate a growing trend of bus operators seeking to move passengers away from cash payments in an attempt to speed up journey times and reduce revenue collection costs. The survey also highlights operators are taking a hit with below cost and below inflation price increases on period products.
The TAS National Bus Fares Survey (NFS) 2019 analysed 1,093 sample three mile bus journeys across Great Britain excluding London. Immediate outputs showed the average three mile adult single fare to be £2.48, the average adult day ticket to be £5.21 and the average adult weekly ticket to be £18.03.
The lowest single fare for an adult traveling three miles was provided by Richards Bros in Fishguard at £0.85 which also had the lowest average single fare at £1.25. The municipal operators offered the lowest average single fare for an operating group of £2.04. The highest fare for a three mile trip was £5.00 on First Kernow in Falmouth.
First West of England’s FirstDay ticket in Weston-super-Mare was the lowest priced day ticket at £2.50 whilst Stagecoach South’s Guildford Local Megarider was the cheapest weekly ticket at £7.00. National Express’s roll-out of Low Fare Zones in the West Midlands has seen its average day ticket price reduce by 2.6%.
Contactless – the New Technology
Whilst availability of Mobile Ticketing appears to have reached market saturation, with 94% of samples having an m-ticket available (compared to 92% in 2017), contactless payment availability has already overtaken it at 96% availability, a whopping increase of 66% since 2017. This is largely due to the commitment by the big groups to provide this facility and the investment by many smaller operators in new ticket machines.
Operators however are still backing m-tickets, offering on average a 2.6% discount for a weekly ticket bought via an app against those bought on bus. FirstBus offers the greatest average discount at 7%, whilst Stagecoach Merseyside and South Lancashire offers the largest individual discount at 20% on its ‘Merseyrider Plus’ ticket.
Multi-Journey Savings
The average Weekly ticket represents a saving of 27% against ten times the average single fare and a 31% saving over five day tickets. This means that even when only travelling four days a week there is a saving to be made.
The average Weekly ticket represents only 2.8% of the average weekly wage in Great Britain against the cost of owning and running a car which represents 13.3% of the Great British average weekly wage.
Whilst the average single fare has increased by 0.8% above RPI and 0.4% above industry costs since 2017, weekly tickets have increased at the rate of RPI and crucially 0.4% below industry costs. This means that operators are seeking to reward their regular passengers rather than profit from them, indeed over ten years weekly tickets have increased by an average of 3.2% below RPI. In comparison over the same period, regulated rail fares have increased by 6.6% above RPI.
Views from the Industry
TAS Senior Consultant Matthew Moll said “With data spanning ten years we are really able to get a good view of how the industry has changed over time. A persistent theme has been the low increase in multi-journey product prices but the technology for paying for and storing these tickets has constantly evolved. The range of single fares offered for the same length journey, from £0.85 to £5, show that there is a large number of factors that determine bus fares on a local level.”
CPT Chief Executive Graham Vidler said: “The survey results clearly show that despite the impact congestion is having on operators’ costs bus travel by and large remains good value for money, with the average weekly ticket still costing less outside of London than within it. Significant investment in new technology by operators now also means that almost every ticket surveyed could have been purchased using contactless payment.”
Martin Dean, Managing Director – Bus Development at the Go-Ahead Group said “The TAS National Fares Survey is a great benchmark for our industry. The 2019 report highlights how bus operators are not only seeking to reward regular travellers through attractive discounts, and are keeping weekly ticket price increases at or below inflation, as they have done for over a decade, but are also investing in customer convenience, as the dramatic increase in contactless payment acceptance detailed in the survey demonstrates.”
The full report and previous editions can be found here:
/by Sarah Huntleyhttps://taspartnership.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/TAS-NFS19.jpg10131198Sarah Huntleyhttps://taspartnership.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/The-TAS-Partnership-Logo-Horizontal-Small-e1567169834623padding.pngSarah Huntley2020-02-12 15:28:042026-01-21 15:00:14TAS National Bus Fares Survey Highlights Push away from Cash Payments
Transport Select Committee Commissions and Praises TAS Review of Concessionary Fares
The TAS Partnership welcomes the publication by The House of Commons Transport Select Committee (TSC) of a report commissioned from us reviewing fare concessions available on different modes of public transport in England (outside London).
The research – Review of Reduced and Concessionary Fares in England Outside London was published on 31 October, 2019 and commissioned following the TSC’s Health of the Bus Market report. One conclusion of the TSC report was to look into concessionary fares as a future inquiry.
It defines a ‘concessionary fare’ as any fare reduced to below the adult level offered to particular groups of people. We primarily focused on:
Fares for older people and disabled people;
Fares for children (under 16) and young people;
Fares for families and groups; and
Travel by:
Bus;
National rail;
Light rail;
Community transport; and
Ferries.
“The main finding is one of inconsistency,” commented TAS Head of Operations Steve Warburton.
The English National Concessionary Travel Scheme provides a statutory minimum level of free travel on local buses at specified times, yet pass availability varies widely from authority to authority in terms of time, mode and eligibility and, in particular, whether companion passes are offered to disabled passholders who cannot travel independently.
Children and Young People, dependent upon whose bus they board, what time of day and where, must pay full adult fare at a range of ages between five and twenty-six and the percentage reduction, when offered, varies hugely. It is a myth that children universally ‘pay half fare up to age sixteen’. The vast majority of reduced fares for children and young people are commercial initiatives by the operators.
Inconsistency prevails in the availability of tickets for families and group and the level of discount offered compared to buying separate tickets and in terms of the maximum number of people included in a ‘family’ or group. Even the nominally national ‘GroupSave’ ticket on National Rail is not offered by all train operators.
“Enhancements to ENCTS and discretionary discount schemes for children and young people have been easy targets for councils looking at saving money” said TAS Senior Consultant, Matthew Moll, who managed the project. “This has added to the patchwork nature of discount availability,” he concluded.
Welcoming the report, Louise Butcher, Policy Lead – Transport, for the House of Commons Library Research Service commented: “This is an useful and illuminating report showing what concessions are available, who they apply to and when and where they can be used – an invaluable resource for researchers going forwards.”
For more information about TAS’ work on concessionary fares, click here or contact Matthew Moll on 01772 204988.
The TAS Partnership has kicked off the sixth National Fares Survey which analyses bus fares and ticketing trends and is calling for interested operators to get in touch.
The survey, which TAS began producing in 2009, is undertaken every two years and compares adult single, day and weekly tickets for most large operators in Great Britain using a sample of over 1,000 three-mile journeys. The report includes various analyses of the fares data including by operator, market and also region, and identifies emerging trends.
TAS Senior Consultant, Matthew Moll, who is leading the project, said: “It is always a privilege to work on the National Fares Survey as it provides such a unique picture of bus fares across Great Britain. Setting changes in fare levels against inflation, changes in running costs and comparing average weekly bus fares and wages are three of the invaluable bench-marks we provide.”
Matthew concluded: “As operators move with technology, so do we, and this year we are adding a new chapter looking at weekly mobile tickets. Many operators offer a discount for purchasing tickets via their apps rather than from the driver whilst others sell certain tickets only through their app.”
If you are a bus operator who is not yet included in the report but would like to be, TAS would love to hear from you. Please call Matthew Moll on 01772 204988 or send him an email by mid-November.
TAS intends to publish the report in early spring 2020. To view our previous National Fares Survey, please visit: National Fares Survey
We also carry out numerous reviews of product and ticket sales to assist operators improve their business offer and levels of return and maximise patronage. To find out more about our fares and ticketing analysis, visit: Fares & Ticketing
/by Sarahhttps://taspartnership.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/30258D-Railway-Station-SmartZone-Prices-Section-e1571923660848.jpg271500Sarahhttps://taspartnership.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/The-TAS-Partnership-Logo-Horizontal-Small-e1567169834623padding.pngSarah2019-10-24 13:56:212019-12-10 11:06:116th National Fares Survey on Bus Fares Kicks Off!
TAS Promotes Up & Coming Business Development Specialist
The TAS Partnership is pleased to announce that Consultant and Business Development Officer John Porter has been promoted to Senior Consultant, after only one year with the company.
John joined TAS in September 2018, having impressed at interview with his enthusiasm and ability to engage with people. Since then he has quickly taken to his role in business development, and is always “willing to push doors to find new ways for TAS to help and work for our industry” – whether through meeting current and potential clients, attending industry conferences or finding new project opportunities for TAS.
Previously engaged in contract work specialising in accountancy projects at BAE Systems, John graduated with a degree in Information Systems which honed pragmatic and targeted problem-solving and solution-focused data analysis skills. Meanwhile, his charisma and patience lend themselves to building excellent rapport with clients and stakeholders.
John has already been involved in a number of key projects including:
undertaking safety audits of Special Educational Needs transport;
taking forward passenger surveys for a municipal bus company; and
A market assessment for a multi-national company looking to increase its public transport operations.
Commenting on his time at TAS so far, John said: “The TAS team is fantastic and everyone is willing to pitch in to make things work. The genuine passion that my colleagues have in providing the best service we can is particularly motivating. As an SME we are an underdog in a field of larger consultancies; one of the challenges I enjoy most is making sure we stand out in that field as much as possible.”
Steve Warburton, TAS Head of Operations, who helped to recruit John, praised him for his “energy, enthusiastic engagement and constant ability to ask ‘why’ and learn”.
Explaining the reason for the promotion, Steve said: ”He has absorbed so many new projects, processes and tasks and often takes on responsibility for various areas without being asked and beyond our expectations.”
TAS Managing Director, Sarah Huntley added: “In his first year, John has demonstrated a real commitment to the company and the aim is that he continues to develop his industry knowledge, skills and contacts, and moves towards a senior business development role.”
Looking to the future John concluded: “I have had a few years with a lot of changes and I now want to settle down at TAS and build a career here. When I hear stories about TAS’s past, I feel we are now coming to a crossroads where there will be an opportunity to really push on as a company and do some great things.”
/by Sarahhttps://taspartnership.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/John-Porter-Senior-Consultant-TAS-Winckley-Square-Preston-e1571654773113.jpg278500Sarahhttps://taspartnership.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/The-TAS-Partnership-Logo-Horizontal-Small-e1567169834623padding.pngSarah2019-10-21 10:55:062019-12-10 11:07:22TAS Promotes Up & Coming Business Development Specialist
Will Traffic Commissioner ruling lead to community transport operators being forced to choose PSV over permits?
By TAS consultants John Atkins and Meera Rambissoon.The Welsh Traffic Commissioner has published an unprecedented judgement on a community transport (CT) operator in South Wales – taking away their section 19 and 22 permits due to contracts operated under them being judged as commercial.
DANSA Ltd was called to a public inquiry in April this year to account for their use of section 19 and 22 permits for the delivery of local authority home to school contracts. The publication of the decision in August 2019 states that DANSA did in fact hold a PSV Operator Licence (‘O’ licence), but one which was not deployed for the contract work.
Nick Jones, Traffic Commissioner for Wales, said that to continue to be exempt from operator licensing under EU Regulation 1071/2009, an operator must be “exclusively non-commercial” – a definition which in his view prevented CT operators competing for and holding home to school contracts, which he stated “tips the balance so that I cannot conclude that DANSA Ltd is exclusively non-commercial”. In effect, Jones concluded that DANSA Ltd must, therefore, be considered in part a commercial undertaking, and therefore no longer able to hold any permits – that is, if any of the operation is deemed commercial, then all of it is.
Jones stated that: “guidance issued by the Department for Transport (DfT) indicates that an entity cannot hold both permits issued under sections 19 and 22 of the Transport Act 1985 and at the same time hold a PSV operator’s licence issued by the traffic commissioner.”
We believe this ‘either/or’ absolute sets a new precedent and makes real the position set out in the DfT Guidance (a letter from the DfT’s Stephen Fidler, 31 July, 2017). It raises questions for a number of CTs. In DANSA’s case the choice has been made for them – all of its eighteen section 19 permits and fourteen section 22 permits are due to be revoked on 31 December 2019 on the basis that the CT will have geared up for a full PSV operation by then.
Following the DfT’s announcement in 2017 that the permit system was to undergo wholescale review, many CTs have been planning to set up trading subsidiaries to host commercial operations under full PSV regulations as a means of using local authority contracts to support their core permit work.
“But the stark choice for CTs with existing PSV licences has not perhaps been anticipated, and we think there are at least 50 CT charities who currently hold both permits and a valid ‘O’ licence, and require both types to continue their operations,” commented John Atkins, former community transport manager and Principal Consultant for TAS.
“It’s not simply case of a CT charity setting up a trading company and then transferring its existing PSV licence to the new company – because this is not actually possible,” John added. “The new company has to apply afresh to the traffic commissioner for an ‘O’ licence, prove independent financial standing, and potentially face additional, extended and unwelcome scrutiny.”
The TAS Partnership has been assisting CT operators to make strategic changes to their business models to reduce the current uncertainty they face. TAS has now developed a package of support and guidance for community transport operators who are faced with these very difficult challenges.
For more information or guidance about any of these issues, please contact John Atkins, Principal Consultant at TAS, on 01772 204988 or email John.Atkins@TASpartnership.com
/by TASWEBLOGINhttps://taspartnership.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/TC-Verdict-Article.jpg419392TASWEBLOGINhttps://taspartnership.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/The-TAS-Partnership-Logo-Horizontal-Small-e1567169834623padding.pngTASWEBLOGIN2019-10-08 13:53:182019-12-10 10:54:18Will Traffic Commissioner ruling lead to community transport operators being forced to choose PSV over permits?
[dropcap]O[/dropcap]ur cherished friend & former colleague Chris Martin has died peacefully, with his wife Jacqui by his side, on Sunday 19 May 2019.
Chris was diagnosed with Stage 4 Melanoma in November 2017 and as many know from his Twitter feed, Chris refused to give into this vicious disease, and fought with unending and staggering humour, vitality, resilience and heart-on-sleeve honesty well beyond the time the doctors told him he had left. In November 2017 he was given 12 months to live, 16 months later and he was still in the office, still fighting, still making us laugh and still contributing to our wonderful industry.
Chris joined the TAS Partnership in July 2008 after an extensive career and many adventures in UK bus and rail management, starting with the Oxford Bus Company and continuing with appointments at Go-Ahead Group, Go North East, Thames Trains and Arriva North East. His most recent role at TAS was as our Business Development Manager, taking forward various aspects of commercial progress and developing or fostering client relationships.
Chris’ passion for public transport and dedication to TAS was truly humbling and infectious and colleagues at TAS are extremely proud to have worked with, learnt from and been inspired by Chris.
Our thoughts and love go out to Chris’ wife Jacqui Martin and his children Josie, Tom and Erin.
On Thursday 30 May, 2.30pm we will be celebrating Chris’s life at West Lancashire Crematorium, L40 7SP on Thursday 30 May at 2.30pm.
Afterwards there will be a gathering at The Walton Fox, PR5 6BZ from 4pm onwards, with buffet-style food being served after 4.30pm. For anyone needing accommodation, there is a Premier Inn right next to the Walton Fox.
One of our industry friends is kindly lending us a bus for the day, in order to provide transport, please contact TAS Managing Director Sarah Huntley if you would like the details about this or any other aspect of the day. You can email her at sarah.huntley@taspartnership.com or call 01772 204988.
Awareness & Donations
Throughout his experience of cancer, Chris campaigned and worked to raise awareness and provide support for others. Chris didn’t want people to spend money on flowers so there will be a collection on the day, to go to Vine House Cancer Help, Preston or if you are not attending but would like to contribute, please contact Sarah as above.
Chris will be sorely missed but so very fondly remembered.
https://taspartnership.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/Mr-Martin-for-Website-6.jpg239768Sarah Huntleyhttps://taspartnership.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/The-TAS-Partnership-Logo-Horizontal-Small-e1567169834623padding.pngSarah Huntley2019-05-23 14:00:112026-01-21 15:00:14Celebrating Chris Martin’s Life
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The TAS Partnership welcomes the publication by The House of Commons Transport Select Committee (TSC) of a report commissioned from us reviewing fare concessions available on different modes of public transport in England (outside London).
The TAS Partnership has kicked off the sixth National Fares Survey which analyses bus fares and ticketing trends and is calling for interested operators to get in touch.
The TAS Partnership is pleased to announce that Consultant and Business Development Officer 
The Welsh Traffic Commissioner has published an unprecedented judgement on a community transport (CT) operator in South Wales – taking away their section 19 and 22 permits due to contracts operated under them being judged as commercial.