Following the article published on Tuesday by Stuart George from the IW Bus Users Group about major services changes to the Isle of Wight bus service in September, Mark Morgan Huws at Southern Vectis got in touch.
He disputed a number of points made by Stuart, so to avoid any further confusion, we felt it best to run his response unedited. This gives you, the reader, the chance to compare the two articles and come to your own conclusions. Ed
Unfortunately the article you published Tuesday contains a significant number of inaccuracies and is misleading in a number of ways, not least in its criticism of IW Council.
Our winter timetable change has been aligned to the date for the renewal of the contracts for ‘financially supported’ bus journeys and routes by IW Council.
This was agreed many months ago between Southern Vectis and IW Council to ensure that changes took place at the same time in a co-ordinated manner.
IW Council have been working through their tendering process for supported services for some months now, following the usual and perfectably acceptable timetable for the process.
From the beginning of the process Southern Vectis made IW Council aware of the services and journeys that the company would be able to provide without any financial support from the Council, and the minority of journeys and routes which would need continuing support should the Council wish them to continue. That information has remained consistent throughout the process and is certainly not something that has only been communicated in the past few weeks.
While IW Council has been progressing its own decision on which journeys and services to fund, Southern Vectis is seperately required to register its timetables with the Traffic Commissioner some eight weeks in advance of the change date. It is not unusual for Councils to wait until a bus operator has registered its commercial services, before deciding what un registered journeys and services to contract. Where Councils make that decision following the close of registrations by the operator, there is statutory provision for the additional supported journeys and routes to be registered after the usual eight week deadline, and this provision is specifically for use in such circumstances.
Southern Vectis has no criticism of or problem with the timescale and detail of the process followed by IW Council in the contracting of supported journeys and routes, and indeed welcomes the Council’s commitment to maintaining a significant level of support for non viable bus services across the Island, despite the very difficult financial circumstances that face all local authorities.
All the routes and journys have been selected by IW Council in good time for them to be included in the forthcoming timetable booklet.
The suggestion that the West Wight had no evening service is incorrect, and an evening service was registered commercially by Southern Vectis. Similarly, services for the majority of West Wight towns and villages have never been threatened, although some towns and villages will rely upon financial support from IW Council. Route 6 is funded by IW Council now and remains so.
While it is always regrettable when services are withdrawn or reduced, the Island suffers from the volume of free travel undertaken by not just residents over 60, but also by a very significant number of tourists whose travel has to be funded locally. The Council clearly has a very difficult job to do to maintain its own spending within reducing budgets and we are pleased that the Council has been able to continue to provide services at levels that remain above those in many similar areas of the country.
Worryingly though, the Department for Transport are rumoured to be considering significant cuts in funding of bus services across England, potentially by requiring bus operators to pay the full duty on fuel used when providing local bus services, even though the airline and rail industry benefits for duty free fuel. The effect of the withdrawal of fuel duty rebate would have a much more draconian effect than any of the changes occuring in September.
The main changes after the award of the tender are:
Outline of changes
1 No major changes
2 Newport to Sandown not Ryde, and evenings replaced by 3
3 No major changes
4 No major changes
5 No major changes
6 Reduced in frequency
7 Newport – Wellow – Yarmouth – Freshwater – Totland – Alum Bay route now consistent and hourly day and night 7 days a week. (does not serve Calbourne or Newbridge)
7 Newport – Brighstone – Freshwater – Totland reduced frequency, daytimes only (route 12)
8 Reduced from half hourly to hourly
9 No major changes
37 No major changes (finishes a bit earlier pm)
25 New East Cowes – Whippingham – Folly route
38 Evening journeys replaced by 7
