NEWS RELEASE ISSSUED ON BEHALF OF STAGECOACH, FIRSTGROUP, GO-AHEAD, ARRIVA AND NATIONAL EXPRESS
• Seamless bus travel now in place in all nine major city regions in England
• System covers more than a third of the 26,000 buses outside London
• Significant private investment in partnership with transport authorities
• Initiative delivers easier, cheaper travel and underpins regional economies
• Transport Minister Andrew Jones welcomes more convenient smart ticketing
Perth, Scotland, 2016-1-11 — /Travel PR News/ — Millions of people now have access to easier and cheaper bus travel after the country’s major transport groups completed the roll-out of smart, multi-operator ticketing in England’s biggest city regions.
Passengers can now use one smartcard to travel on different bus operators’ vehicles in the main metropolitan areas of Greater Manchester, Merseyside, Tyne and Wear, West Midlands, South and West Yorkshire, as well as Nottingham, Leicester and Bristol.
The latest benefit for bus passengers has been delivered through significant private investment by Stagecoach, FirstGroup, Go-Ahead, Arriva and National Express, and support from transport authority partners.
Collectively, the five companies operate around six out of every 10 buses in the UK. At the same time, the cost of multi-operator travel has been reduced in a number of areas, with some prices cut by around 20%.
It will improve the accessibility of buses and connectivity between locations for more than a quarter of the population in England. Around 10,000 of the 26,000 buses in service in England outside London are located in the main metropolitan areas alone.
Around 15 million people live in England’s nine biggest city regions that are within the Department for Transport’s Smart Cities Partnership and cover more than 50 local authority areas. These regions account for a quarter of the country’s jobs, as well as producing 23% of its economic output.
The launch of smart, multi-operator bus ticketing will also help underpin the economy and growth aspirations of these key regions.
Stagecoach, Britain’s biggest bus operator, said the new system would build on the huge investment by many bus companies in digital technology. Robert Montgomery, Managing Director of Stagecoach UK Bus, said: “We have a multi-million-pound rolling programme of investment in giving our customers new digital tools to make their journeys easier. Stagecoach already provides passengers with the most extensive bus smart ticketing platform outside London and we are delighted to work jointly with our industry partners and transport authorities to deliver more seamless travel to attract more people on board the country’s buses.”
Giles Fearnley, Managing Director of First Bus, said: “First Bus is delighted to have played its part in delivering this important development in smart ticketing which complements our existing mobile ticketing offer available across all our networks. Along with our fellow operators, we are determined to work with our local authority partners to make it easy and attractive to use bus services.”
Martin Dean, Managing Director Bus Development, Go-Ahead Group, said: “Working together with industry and local authority partners we’re pleased to play a significant role in the delivery of multi operator ticketing across England’s city regions. We know customers appreciate seamless, simple, convenient ways to pay and smartcards, along with m-tickets and other digital payment methods, make travelling as easy as possible.”
Kevin O’Connor, Managing Director UK Bus, Arriva Plc, said: “This is a significant step forward which has been achieved through a real partnership with our colleagues in local authorities and Passenger Transport Executives. It is one which has established a strong foundation from which to move on to offer our customers even more convenient ticketing in the near future.”
Peter Coates, Managing Director of National Express UK Bus, said: “In the West Midlands, the partnership between National Express, Centro and other industry stakeholders has successfully delivered the Swift multi-operator and multi-modal smartcard. As part of the ground breaking Bus Alliance partnership we are committed to continuing our investment in technology and innovative ticketing that deliver further benefits to our customers.”
Bus operators made a pledge in November 2014 to introduce the smart ticketing initiative across the city regions by the end of 2015.
The smart ticketing initiative was larger in scale than the Oyster project in London and benefits nearly 6.5 million more people than the scheme in the capital.
It builds on existing paper-based multi-operator tickets which have been in place for many years and also enhances individual bus operators’ own smart travel products.
The latest smart ticketing developments were welcomed by Transport Minister Andrew Jones. He said: “This is a great example of the bus industry and transport authorities leading the way on smart ticketing, working in partnership to make everyday journeys easier and more convenient for millions of people in city regions across the country.
“Buses are the backbone of our transport system, which is why our long-term economic plan is providing £250 million to support bus services outside of London this year to help people get around and get on.”
Bus operators are also exploring how best to accommodate the use of other media for public transport payment, including smartphones, contactless debit and credit cards, and Apple Pay.
Looking ahead, the multi-operator system gives a platform to deliver, in partnership with transport authorities, a single smart ticketing solution that works on all modes of public transport.
ENDS
Media contacts
Stagecoach Group
Tel: +44 (0)1738 442111 or email media@stagecoachgroup.com
FirstGroup
Tel: +44 (0)20 7725 3354 or email stuart.butchers@firstgroup.com
Go-Ahead
Tel: +44 (0)20 7799 8983 or email communications@go-ahead.com
Arriva
Tel: +44 (0)191 520 4106 or email henrys@arriva.co.uk
National Express
Tel: +44 (0)7920 878819 or email ali.bell@nationalexpress.com
SOURCE: Stagecoach Group plc.