Issue - meetings

An officer briefing note on Quality Contract Schemes will be circulated.

On a motion from Councillor John Bull, seconded by Councillor Eleanor Jackson, it was

RESOLVED

1.  Council notes that buses are a key part of the B&NES Transport Strategy yet the current services often do not serve the needs of residents and are viewed as expensive and unreliable.

2.  Council further notes the powers contained within the Transport Act 2000, as amended, to set up a Quality Contract Scheme (QCS) which would allow the Authority to plan the bus route network, set the fares and award contracts to run services or local networks.

3.  Council recognises, however, that under a QCS there is a revenue risk to the Council in that it would be responsible for meeting any shortfall in fares income to cover the operating costs of the contracts.

4.  Council also recognises that where a decision has been made to proceed with a QCS in the North East, this has been a joint decision between multiple local authorities.

5.  For the reasons outlined in 3 and 4 (above), Council believes that significantly more work is required to determine whether a QCS is the best way forward for the provision of buses in B&NES.

6.  Council therefore asks, in the first instance, the Planning, Transport and Environment Policy Development and Scrutiny Panel to undertake further work into the potential, including advantages and disadvantages, as well as cost implications and any financial risk to the Council, of a QCS in B&NES with a report back to the new Council preferably by July 2015 but by the end of the calendar year at the latest.

[Notes;

1 – An amendment to the motion was moved by Councillor Caroline Roberts and seconded by Councillor Lisa Brett to introduce a paragraph noting the good relationships with providers and listing various positive initiatives that had been introduced.  This was lost, with 27 Councillors voting in favour and 29 voting against.

2 – The successful resolution above was carried with all Councillors voting in favour except for Councillors Gerry Curran, Andy Furse and Doug Nicol who abstained.]