Feedback from the consultation exercise under taken between
May/November 2006
Students from John Leggott and North Lindsey Colleges have been
given the opportunity to comment on the public transport services
that they use to travel to college. The most common comments and
complaints were:
- Overcrowding
- Condition of buses
- Punctuality
- Frequency of services
- Driver behaviour
- Passenger behaviour
- Location of bus stops.
We have looked at all the points identified to see how we can
improve the service for students. Our responses to the six main
areas of discontent are set out below.
Overcrowding
- We receive applications for bus passes throughout the summer,
up to and after the start of the autumn term. We notify the bus
companies of the number of bus passes that have been issued at the
end of August so that they can put on the right number of buses at
the start of term.
- Judging how many buses are needed is not straightforward, as
many students don't travel everyday. There is a peak at the
start of the autumn term that settles down after the fist few
days.
- There were problems with the provision made on the
Barton/Winterton routes, with Barton students being stranded in
Winterton. In September 2006 we tried to ease the situation by
designating a 350W route to which Winterton students were
allocated. Seats on the 350 Barton to Scunthorpe route were
therefore reserved for students living in the Barton area.
- Sometimes, where there is more than one bus travelling through
a village, e.g. 100/101 buses through Messingham, many students
wait for the latest bus into college, which is consequently
overcrowded. Had they caught one of the earlier buses they would
probably have got a seat.
- With students' help we will monitor the situation and ask
the bus companies to increase their provision if there is clearly
insufficient capacity on any route. If any students are willing to
help us monitor bus services we should very much like to hear from
them. Payment will be made to students who we appoint as
monitors.
- We welcome feedback from students about overcrowding problems
at any time. Comments sheets are available from the Colleges'
Customer Services Offices.
Punctuality
- It is very difficult for us to follow up comments about buses
being late or early unless we receive them at the time they have
occurred. Please tell us about any such incidents when they happen,
either by calling 01724 297216 or by completing a comments form, so
that we can follow them up with the bus company.
- Some buses have CCTV systems installed. It is easy to check
whether a complaint about punctuality is justified on buses fitted
with CCTV.
Condition of buses
- We will follow up comments about the condition of buses with
the company concerned.
Frequency of services
- Buses are run as commercial concerns. Bus companies will only
provide services where it makes commercial sense to do so. On some
routes, e.g. Scunthorpe to Barton, there are several services
during the day as there are enough fare paying passengers to
warrant it, but in other areas there are too few passengers to make
this worthwhile.
- The council contracts routes 640 and 647 specifically for
college students' use. It would be too expensive for us to
provide these services at times other than the start and end of the
college day.
- New and more frequent services have been put on in some areas,
e.g. Bottesford and Messingham.
Bus stops
- The council's Highways and Transport service has a
programme of improvements to the public transport infrastructure,
so improvements to your local stop may already been in hand.
- If you want to suggest any changes to stops in your
neighbourhood, please contact the Public Transport team on 01724
297460.
Driver behaviour
- We are hoping to provide training for drivers on school buses
later this year. This may be extended to drivers on college routes
if there is sufficient demand
- Some companies, e.g. Stagecoach already have their own driver
training programmes
- Allegations about driver behaviour will be followed up with the
company concerned, if they are reported as soon as they occur.
Where CCTV is installed on the bus it should be possible to
substantiate the allegation by checking the photographic
evidence.
- Students should remember that drivers have a difficult job. By
behaving courteously towards the driver, they can help him/her to
provide a better service to passengers.
- It is nice to know that students think highly of the attitude
and driving skills of some drivers - we will pass this on to their
employers
Passenger behaviour
- Students and other members of the public have complained about
the behaviour of college students on the bus
- One of the most common complaints is about students smoking -
this is not allowed on public transport
- CCTV footage on a number of buses helps identify any passenger
who has behaved inappropriately
- Students can help us to deal with poor behaviour by reporting
it to us on the day of the incident
- If we can identify the student involved and substantiate the
allegation we can take some action. This may result in the
student's bus pass being withdrawn.
- Bus companies are also entitled to refuse transport to any
passenger who poses a risk to the safety of the service.
- We know that the vast majority of students behave well when
travelling on the bus from home to college. Please help us to
ensure that the service you use, which is normally a public service
available to other passengers, is a pleasant environment for
everyone.
Thank you for all your comments about your home to college
transport. We have produced a comments form attached below. Please
use the form to report any concerns or complaint about your
transport so that we can follow the matter up as soon as the
incident occurred. The form can be downloaded and when completed,
returned to Lynne.Downs@northlincs.gov.uk
or returned to the address on the form.
