Special council meeting calls in Stagecoach boss

One in 12 Exeter buses not running

Exeter’s bus service has been heavily criticised during a special meeting on the ‘crisis.’

Councillors grilled the boss of Stagecoach South West and shared their own experiences at a meeting of the city’s highways and traffic orders committee (HATOC) on Tuesday.

It comes after significant disruption to the city’s bus network over the last few months, with a lack of drivers and a drop in passenger numbers – currently around 70 per cent of pre-pandemic levels – leading to cancellations and reduced timetables.

Stagecoach’s managing director in the region, Mike Watson, said the firm is still short of 55 drivers in Exeter, but that 70 people are at different stages of the recruitment process.

Currently 92 per cent of services are running, the committee was told, which is down on the usual level of 99.5 per cent – a figure: “the residents of Exeter have been used to for years” according to Mr Watson.

“That’s why this is such a shock to everyone,” he added, “and quite traumatic for a lot of people when eight per cent of the buses don’t don’t turn up. That’s something that I do take very seriously.”

The bus chief said it was “with great regret that I’m here today,” describing it as “quite devastating,” given the firm had previously enjoyed a “pretty good relationship with the city”.

Mr Watson admitted it was his responsibility, but stressed that a plan is in place to improve the network and bolster current staffing levels, which he says are being made worse by covid-related absences.

But Councillor Barbara Denning (Labour, Heavitree) slammed the current service.“I can’t walk very far, she said. “I need to use a bus. And very often I’m stood at a bus stop for 45 minutes and I can see that bus time going up and then a bus doesn’t come.”

She added: “We have people who are unable to walk, young people who need to get to school are being late constantly, people who need to get to work don’t use a bus any more; they use their cars which is not helping in regard to net zero. We really need to get this bus service put right.”

Cllr Denning raised safety concerns as a result of the disruption, telling of a time when she had pick up her daughter and three other young women late at night because the last bus had not turned up.

“I just found that atrocious and I’m getting quite upset just thinking about it now.”

In response, Mr Watson said the policy is to: “prioritise and make sure last buses run, so I’m a bit gutted to find out that one didn’t because that is a very rare occurrence,” adding the firm tends to reimburse taxi fares in such instances.

Stagecoach South West boss answers is grilled by councillors (courtesy: Devon County Council)

Councillor Rob Hannaford, leader of the Labour group on Devon County Council, said the disruption is a big issue on the doorstep and that it was the “first time I think in many years that we have called a special HATOC meeting.”

“I think that is in reflection of the seriousness of the situation of buses and public transport in and around Exeter. I don’t think it’s a too strong a word to describe this as a bus crisis in Exeter.

He queried the suggestion that 92 per cent of buses were running in the city.“Maybe that’s 92 per cent of a much reduced service that’s running,” he claimed, “but it certainly doesn’t feel as if 92 per cent of the services are [running] around Exeter.”

He continued: “We need to clearly reflect and give voice to the sheer exasperation, anger and fury of buses users in and around Exeter at the current appalling so-called service. It is quite dreadful.”

Cllr Hannaford wants public transport to be in public ownership, but conversely suggests franchising should be explored through the council as a way of improving competition. He described the current model as a “busted flush.”

“It isn’t working for the passengers,” he said. “I don’t think it’s working for the drivers and it certainly isn’t working towards our climate change and carbon reduction strategy.”

Former bus driver and now leader of Exeter City Council Phil Bialyk (Labour, Exwick) – who previously said “something must be done to improve our local buses” – also called for bus franchising as part of Devon’s current devolution discussions with the government, as well as zero emission buses.

Mr Watson defended the eco-credentials of Exeter’s current fleet, saying the majority are cleaner ‘Euro 6’ diesel engines. He said apart from in London there are not many electric fleets – which cost twice as much – especially in the south west.

He said Stagecoach would require funding packages to help it to buy electric  but that the company is trying “to get ahead of the game” with electric charging infrastructure at its Marsh Barton depot.

On franchising, he said it was “sometimes put out there with little thought around what it means – how long it takes to implement, what it means to competing companies, paying conditions,” although he admitted: “I know those conversations have to take place.

“I think that you have responsibility to explore those options. I really do. But equally, I will remain as committed as ever to working in partnership to improve the situation here and now.”

The meeting also heard from Sharon Pavey of the Exeter Area Bus Action Group –an organisation known as Teabag – who said: “Please do something for all the people that are stood at the bus stops or have given up, or are late for hospital appointments, late for school every day, risking their jobs because they can’t get there, women at bus stops late at night.

“And please mention the drivers as well, because we hear stories from the drivers about working conditions. If their working hours are too long, change it. Make it so that they don’t have such long working hours. That might sound like it’s really hard, but is it really hard?”

Mr Watson admitted that two-thirds of drivers who had left the company did so because of the hours and shifts, which he blamed in part on it not being a 9 to 5, Monday to Friday occupation.

He said they had recently reduced the number of evenings and weekends drivers work, describing improvements to rosters and shifts as: “the biggest issue that we have to address”.

He defended the current levels of salaries and fares following criticism at the meeting. Pay recently increased to £11.80 an hour for new drivers, while on-board fares went up by as much as 10 per cent.

“I am playing this balance of trying to get conditions and pay as good as I possibly can for the staff, but also not making the product so expensive that no one uses us any more.”

The committee agreed that the current bus service in Exeter is ‘not fit for purpose’ and called on the county council’s ruling cabinet to press for a bus franchise agreement to be an essential part of any Devon devolution deal.

It also called on the council to work with operators on a marketing plan to get people back on buses.