Is it time to rethink bus regulation?
Passenger vehicle operation in the UK is an obstacle course of regulations - can we do anything to smooth the way for flexible transport?
Smart Transport Issue 10 - Bus Strategy and MaaS Regulation
The May 2021 issue has two articles from Beate, looking at the deliverability of the National Bus Strategy and examining the barriers to MaaS thrown up by the UK’s commercial and regulatory landscape.
DRT: transport jobs vs gig economy?
The Bus Strategy regularly refers to demand responsive transport ensuring that the network runs in areas and at times where there are fewer passengers. Considering that DRT can be provided through private hire licensing or bus operator regulation, now is the time to think about how much of our network is provided through regular employment (with the safety framework it entails) and how much heavy lifting is done by gig economy workers.
Guest blog: Schoolkids, smart cards and bus cuts
Antony de Heveningham examines the reasons for cuts to local bus services, and comes up with a novel culprit.
Comments on the Transport for the North Strategic Transport Plan
Whilst the desire to upgrade and enhance the rail offer for the North is welcome and not before time, along with an emphasis on simplified and best value ticketing, I fear that insufficient attention has been paid to the potential for behaviour change, active travel, transport data and novel forms of transport to make an impact on the plans for the road network, which potentially renders them inappropriate or irrelevant.