Brighton Area Buswatch

Representing Bus Users

NEWS PAGE

October/November 2012 News

- For news on Roger French's retirement see below.

Our formal launch on Friday 5 October

Friday 5th October saw the formal launch of Brighton Area Buswatch by Transport Minister and Lewes MP Norman Baker. This event took place at the Jubilee Library in Brighton and was attended by over thirty people, including Stephen Morris- General Manager Bus Users UK, Roger French- Managing Director, Brighton & Hove Buses and Ian Davey- Chairman of Transport Committee, Brighton & Hove City Council. The event was a big success and feedback has been very positive, with features in The Argus and other papers. We hope it will do the job of enhancing our reputation locally and enabling us to attract new members and supporters. Our new facebook page has already attracted a number of followers and ‘likes’.

Over the coming months Brighton Area Buswatch will aim to increase public awareness through the press and media and by publicising our activities. Our main message will be that we are an independent voice for local bus users and we can get things done by working closely with our partners in local authorities, bus companies and other local amenity groups.

Roger French to retire

The well-respected Managing Director of Brighton & Hove Buses has announced his intention to step down next March following a career spanning 42 years in the bus industry, 30 of them in Brighton. Roger has developed Brighton & Hove Buses into one of the most successful bus companies in the UK, doubling patronage over the past 20 years. The company has won several industry awards and in 2005 Roger was awarded the OBE for his services. Many innovations such as flat fares and route branding have been copied around the country.

Particular credit must go to the way he has led his company within the local community, getting involved with local charities and supporting council sponsored transport schemes. It is probably correct to say he created the first ‘transport partnership’ with a local authority, a term which these days has strict legal definitions. He is definitely ‘Mr Bus’ in this area and he will be a hard act to follow. Roger has always been extremely supportive to us, attending our recent launch with great enthusiasm. We wish him a long and happy retirement.

- News on Brighton & Hove Council projects-see below

Countryliner in administration

The company went into administration on the evening of Monday 8 October. This means administrators are appointed with the aim of finding a buyer for the company. If this is successful it may continue, otherwise parts of it will be sold off or the company could simply be wound up. Countryliner has bus services in East and West Sussex and Surrey.

A list of affected services in East Sussex was available on www.eastsussex.gov.uk/roadsandtransport/public/buses/ Huge credit is due to staff at East Sussex County Council who worked hard through the night on 8/9 October to ensure all services ran the following day with different operators in charge. They also kept the media fully informed and the situation was widely reported on local radio and regional TV. In the Lewes area most services have been taken on by Compass Bus which moved quickly to replace Countryliner, often with buses from its own smart fleet. Hams Travel and Stagecoach are also running some services, outside Lewes.

Many routes in Mid Sussex (and beyond) have been taken over by Heritage Travel. The three routes into Brighton from Haywards Heath and Burgess Hill – 33, 40 & 40X continue to run, often with hired Countryliner vehicles (as are routes 31& 39). The '30' is being run by Southdown PSV, the '261' by Stagecoach, and the '166' & Village Rider '824' by Compass Travel. Buses are expected to run to existing timetables.

Stop Press: From November 9th, Services 34 & 35 will be run by Metrobus. Existing timetable will be maintained.

We welcome any feedback from bus users affected – please write to us at brightonbuswatch@gmail.com.

News of Brighton & Hove City Council transport projects

1) Lewes Road bus lanes approved
On 2 October, Brighton & Hove City Council’s Transport Committee unanimously agreed a scheme for new bus and cycle lanes in Lewes Road. Subject to final approval at the full Council meeting on 27 November, there will be continuous bus and cycle lanes in both directions between Lewes Road bus garage and Stony Mere Way (by the A27 flyover). Work could start before the end of 2012, funded by the Governments Local Sustainable Transport Fund.

Improvements were also planned around the Vogue gyratory (by Sainsbury’s) but proposals for this area require further work to ensure the smooth traffic flow can be maintained. Minor changes may also be made to the section between The Vogue gyratory and Elm Grove but there is insufficient space for new bus and cycle lanes here. Although not without controversy, Brighton Area Buswatch's chairman has been closely involved in the design of these bus/cycle lanes.

2) Brighton Station Gateway
This project aims to improve the environment outside the front of Brighton Station. Earlier this year Brighton & Hove City Council consulted on a number of options to change the road layouts, bus stopping facilities, taxi ranks and pedestrian routes. There was strong opposition to moving bus stops away from the station entrance and latest proposals envisage many buses remaining in the station forecourt area.

The most radical change is a proposal to relocate the taxi rank to the area where the southbound no 7 & 27 buses currently stop, near the forecourt. Taxis would reach the new rank via Frederick Place and Trafalgar Street and the traffic flow in both streets would have to be reversed to accommodate this. The 7/27 and 6 stops would be moved slightly south and Junction Road (the short link road between the station end of Surrey Street and Queens Road) would be narrowed and become one way towards Queens Road. Both Queens Road and Surrey Street would be one way, as they are at present on a temporary basis. The northbound bus stop would be in a similar position to at present, but the pavement area would be enlarged significantly.

A further consultation on this proposal is currently taking place until November 30th. Brighton Area Buswatch has some reservations about the detailed road layouts proposed, but we generally support this proposal.

3) Valley Gardens
Valley Gardens is the area between Old Steine and St Peter’s church where several islands of green space are surrounded by two or three lanes of busy traffic on the A23. As a result these green spaces are of little use to pedestrians. The Valley Gardens scheme aims to make them more attractive and accessible. This is quite a challenge because of the need to keep traffic flowing and maintain bus priority measures in this vital bus corridor. A major constraint is the existence of protected elm trees which survived the spread of Dutch Elm Disease and the great storm of 1987. Retaining these means it is unlikely that traffic can be contained on one side of the gardens only.

Brighton Area Buswatch and Brighton & Hove Buses have been invited to take part in workshops to develop proposals, to ensure the needs of bus users are taken into account. We will keep you informed here.