Agenda item

Update by Mr Timothy Stephenson, Passenger Transport Manager

With reference to paragraph 4 of the Minute of 5 September 2019, Scottish Borders Council Passenger Transport Manager, Mr Timothy Stephenson, gave a verbal update on Transport Planning.  Mr Stephenson explained that local bus services were not a statutory requirement, with subsidies on local bus services (LBS) costing £1.5m per annum, and moved 1m travellers.  As with other Local Authorities, budgets of the LBS were always being reviewed.  Savings made in 2018 totalled £200k and were based on data collected on-bus and passenger trends, providing alternatives and some innovative thinking.  Savings in 2019 of £85k were already secured without further cuts to bus services and £165k of budget savings were needed in 2020.  The Plan for 2020 and beyond identified a number of under-performing bus routes, declining passenger numbers; re-tendered pricing across Scotland was around 20%; the cost per passenger (subsidy) was very high and was not sustainable.  There were some tough decisions to be made to secure a workable plan to save £165k and look at alternatives rather than cutting services.  In August and September 2019 officers met with communities and had conversations on meeting their local needs.  Mr Stephenson advised that four bus routes within the Berwickshire area (the No. 32, 85/87, 710 and 902) were being reviewed due to the high cost per passenger.  The Berwick/Hutton/Paxton service was not doing well and was currently on a 1-2 year contract.  He advised that he would meet with the Hutton/Paxton community to assess what the route should look like before going back out to tender as there were very few passengers using the service at the moment.  It was proposed to try and get the cost down from £5.33 to £3.60 to bring in line with the average cost per passenger for the Borders.  The 85/87 service would be reduced to 2 days per week (Tuesday and Thursday) and a revised timetable had been sent out to all Community Councils on the route.  The service was only carrying 4.5k passengers per annum and was the most expensive route in the Borders.  The 710 service would go entirely as it only had 110 passengers last year.  The 902 timetable had been changed to include the link through Greenlaw, Leitholm and Kelso, with a consultation out at the moment and due to close in a few days.  Engagement had taken place with Hutton & Paxton CC to look at a provision to replace the 87 service and a workaround was being assessed.  In response to a question about the re-opening of Reston Station, Mr Stephenson advised that he would be happy to sit down with the Community Council and the wider community to see what transport links could be made.  With regard to the loss of the 87 service, there could be further discussions on the use of an on-demand service similar to that provided to West Linton.  Mr Stephenson confirmed that Berwickshire Wheels had secured another year of SBC funding for their Hub and was aware that they were struggling for volunteer drivers due to the size of the area.  The operating model would be assessed as it was recognised the importance of this service in the area and the need for a gradual change going forward to have paid drivers.  The Chair thanked Mr Stephenson for his time in attending the meeting.