DRT schemes are an example of an important new trend in public transport provision that fist the category of ‘infrastructure change’ that addresses transport-related social exclusion. It is a method of transport provision seen in governmental and transport circles as ideally suited to addressing transport exclusion, as demonstrated by its traditional usage in providing ‘door-to- door’ transport for those with particular transport needs, in particular those with mobility problems due to age or disability. DRT is widely viewed as an necessary adaptation to changing transport needs and levels of service provision which have resulted, in part, from the effects of public transport privatisation; in particular the cutting of services which are seen as ‘inefficient’. These services are often those that do not fall into the category of major ‘corridors’ that are the major revenues generators for private transport providers.
We were also interested in looking at ‘soft’ infrastructure change11, the area in which the majority of public transport responses to exclusion are being made. As in the case of the parking charges described in chapter 6, we first identified the most recent schemes which had been put into place, in order to be able to observe the process of exclusion being addressed as much as the mere running of such schemes. Initial fieldwork looked at different schemes being proposed or put into place around the country, and the Super 8 and U-Call services stood out as the most recent. In fact, the U-Call scheme had not been officially launched when the research began, and has only been running as a full service (with the coordinating software on-line and the fleet of three specially adapted vehicles operating) as of October 2002. Fieldwork at this site was therefore deferred until December 2002. The Super 8 service has been operating for two years,
but like the U-Call scheme is still attracting new patronage (at a slower rate) and qualifies as an innovation in transport provision which is still being developed.
8.2.i Super 8 in Garstang
The Garstang Super 8 bus service is described as having “both a conventional bus service with a fixed route and timetable and also […] the flexibility, within a designated area, to deviate from this route to pick up passengers who have booked the bus in advance”12. It operates around the market town of Garstang, which sits on the A6 between Lancaster and Preston. It is the largest town in the service area13.
The service’s name is derived from the routes the bus takes, in loops to the east and west of the town, forming a figure-of-eight. Although it was originally planned that the bus would service both areas daily, it was eventually decided that the service would alternate between the eastern and western loops on a daily basis, with the exception of Thursday and Saturday services. On these days (Thursday being the market day and Saturday a traditional shopping day) both loops are serviced, with less frequency.
One bus runs the Super 8 routes, although another is available in case of breakdown, The bus is a custom-modified Optare minibus, with 16 seats, space and facilities to carry one wheelchair, and a rear-mounted bicycle rack which can carry two bikes. Although, as mentioned, the bus runs to a timetable, the DRT aspect is provided by the facility to book a journey from anywhere within a set catchment area. This is done by telephoning the Super 8 Control Centre, with bookings being communicated to the driver via an on-board radio set. When the bus is over- subscribed, a taxi is called out to fulfil the same journey for the same fare. The service is run as a partnership between Lancashire County Council (LCC) and Preston Community Transport (PCT), and has absorbed some of the services provided by each of the partnership organisations in the realms of public and community transport.
8.2.ii U-Call in West Newcastle
The U-Call scheme comprises four different routes14. West Newcastle is an area which ranks highly on the Index of Multiple Deprivation, and which includes New Deal for Communities neighbourhoods. It has also been the focus of other research on social exclusion (Moore and Lilley, 2001). The West Road runs through a part of the area serviced by U-Call, and is a typical major corridor in terms of regular bus provision. However, the areas surrounding this corridor are poorly serviced by public transport, and the Metro system is only accessible in the northern fringe, at Kingston Park station. The (day-time) U-Call service is primarily designed, like the Super 8, to enable access to a central hub which has shops, health and community services, as well as further transport links, in this case the West Denton shopping centre, swimming pool and library complex.
12 Super 8 website (http://www.garstangsuper8.co.uk/).
13
C
omprises the rural districts of the parishes of Preesall, Stalmine, Hambleton, Out Rawcliffe, Pilling,Winmarleigh, Nateby, Barnacre-with-Bonds, Nether Wyresdale, Claughton, Bilsborrow and the Oakenclough part of Bleasdale Parish. This area contains many hamlets and villages and a widely dispersed population, and stretches from the foothills of Bowland Forest in the east, to the flatter farmland bounded by the Wyre estuary in the west.
14 The fieldwork was carried out on the most frequently used service, that which operates from 09.30 to
16.40 in an area bounded by West Denton in the east, Kingston Park in the north, and the villages of Lemington and Throckley to the west. The other routes comprise a through-the-night service to the city’s airport, and morning and evening services that provide links to employment sites that are still being developed. Apparently the patronage of these services is still low, and we were advised that it would not be worthwhile attempting data collection on the services at the time of fieldwork.
U-Call operates with a fleet of 3 minibuses, and one in reserve, a mix of Renault and Optare vehicles that are accessible to push-chairs and the elderly due to low floors, and have facilities to carry wheelchair users and space for push-chairs. The drivers are in constant contact with the control centre in the city centre offices of NEXUS15 through the on-board Mobile Data Terminals (MDTs) and their pick-ups and drop-offs are relayed to them on screen in a system comparable to taxis’ call out displays. Although it is advised that passengers book their journeys at least an hour in advance, the system is sufficiently ‘real-time’ to allow last minute pick-ups, and the drivers can relay information about delays back to the office.
Unlike the Super 8, the U-Call service does not operate to set timetabled routes. Instead, the buses call at set nodes half-hourly, with all three buses returning to the West Denton ‘hub’ on the hour. Thus it also operates as a hybrid DRT/timetabled service, although with greater flexibility than the Super 8, with pick-ups being bookable from and to anywhere within the service area. The system is coordinated by Trapeze software in the NEXUS offices, which automatically sends the travel information (including the name of the passenger) to the relevant bus. Like the Super 8, the U-Call also operates as a ‘hail-and-ride’ service whilst it is in operation on route. These two schemes have arrived at a specific point in time, designed to fulfil a number of policy objectives that exist in the public transport arena. To explore this relatively new form of transport provision, it is necessary to understand the factors that prompted their development and implementation. Although we are treating the schemes as a response to transport-related social exclusion, their origin is dependent on a number of contingent circumstances relating to wider policy issues and, we would argue, the direction of public transport policy itself.