A major report for Glasgow City Council says commercial bus operators should be given one last chance to deliver improvements to services within a deregulated framework. If they are deemed to have failed, it should then take advantage of franchising powers in legislation currently before the Scottish parliament.
The recommendation comes from an independent connectivity commission set up by the Scottish National Partycontrolled city council and chaired by former UK government transport adviser Prof David Begg, who in an earlier life was a Labour councillor responsible for transport policy in Edinburgh.
In its first of two reports setting out policy recommendations for Glasgow, the commission has focused on the city centre. It wants public transport, cycling and walking to be prioritised over the private car and highlights a steep decline in bus use — over 70million passengers lost per year in under 10 years — in a city with low levels of car ownership.
‘Bus service quality and passenger information are poor,’ it says. ‘The bus fleet is one of the oldest in the UK, journey times are declining, ticket prices are prohibitive for many passengers and the partnership of public and private organisations that …
