Any model also got problems - the annual inflation associated with service being provided by operators...
http://www.todayonline.com/singapore/bus...epage=true
Bus contracting model has worked in London, Perth
The bus contracting model in London has contributed to a rise in passenger journeys, from 2.2 billion in financial year 2008/2009 to 2.3 billion in 2012/2013. Photo: Bloomberg
BY
JOY FANG
PUBLISHED: MAY 22, 4:12 AM(PAGE 1 OF 1) - PAGINATE
Cities using the bus contracting model, under which the government assumes the role of master route planner and opens up the market to competition via a tender system, have seen improvements in bus service and reliability and a rise in customer satisfaction, analysts said. Joy Fang (joyfangz@mediacorp.com.sg) looks at how the system has worked in London and Perth.
LONDON’S EXPERIENCE
The London bus market was first privatised in 1985.
In 2001, the newly-formed Transport for London (TfL) introduced the Quality Incentive Contracts to replace the Gross Cost and Net Cost contracts as routes were tendered out.
The system, after which Singapore’s bus service reliability framework is modelled, offers to operators direct financial incentives, which are linked to the quality of service given.
London Buses, which is under TfL, is responsible for bus network planning, contracting and performance monitoring. It sets fares and retains revenue earned.
The bus operators own, manage and maintain the operating infrastructure and assets. The British capital has a fleet of about 8,500 buses, which ply more than 700 routes and have a common livery.
London Buses now has seven major and several smaller operators under contract to operate buses. Local players include Go-Ahead London and Sullivan Buses. Foreign players include Metroline, a subsidiary of Singapore’s ComfortDelGro; Arriva, a subsidiary of Germany’s Deutsche Bahn; and Australia’s Tower Transit.
Bus contracts are for a period of five years, with the option of a two-year extension, and packages are grouped in tranches of five to six routes. Staff transfer comes under the Transfer of Undertakings (Protection of Employment) Regulations 2006, which ensures that employees are not dismissed and that the most important terms and conditions of contracts remain fairly the same.
The new system has worked well, with bus ridership growing by 68 per cent between financial years 1999/2000 and 2007/2008. In 2008, the buses carried more than six million passengers per day. In its annual report released in July last year, TfL said passenger journeys in financial year 2012/2013 were 2.3 billion, up from 2.2 billion in 2008/2009.
However, fares have been on the rise. The Economist magazine reported in March that bus fares had increased by 59 per cent since 2005. This year also saw above-inflation fare hikes, which London Mayor Boris Johnson said were needed to ensure that the government has the funds needed to improve the network.
PERTH’S EXPERIENCE
In Perth, the contracting model was introduced in 1995 as part of public transport reforms.
The Public Transport Authority (PTA) is responsible for the operation of all bus, train and ferry public transport services in the greater metropolitan area under its Transperth brand. It owns the operating infrastructure and assets and leases them to operators, which not only manage and maintain them, but also run the services.
Operators are under contractual requirement to ensure consistent remuneration and terms of employment. They are also required to offer employment to a minimum 90 per cent of permanent staff hired by the incumbent for each contract area.
Contracts are for 10 years, with packages of about 20 to 40 routes. There are three bus operators running a fleet of more than 1,300 buses for more than 290 routes. The operators are Path Transit, a subsidiary of Australian Transit Enterprises; Swan Transit, a subsidiary of Transit Systems, which also runs Tower Transit; and Transdev Perth, a subsidiary of France-based Transdev.
In its annual report released in June last year, the PTA said ridership has continued to rise. There were 83.5 million passenger boardings on Perth bus services in the year 2012/2013, up from 73.5 million in 2008/2009.
While passengers currently pay only about one-third the cost of providing the public transport service, Western Australia Premier Colin Barnett said in an interview earlier this year that he expected them to pay as much as half the cost eventually.
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