Issue - meetings

(To receive a report by the Executive Director – Place which seeks approval for the preparation and publication of a Bus Service Improvement Plan (BSIP) for Lincolnshire)

1.    That the preparation and publication of a Bus Service Improvement Plan (BSIP) for Lincolnshire be approved.

2.    That the themes and schemes proposed in the Report as the basis for the preparation of the Bus Service Improvement Plan for Lincolnshire be approved.

3.    That authority to determine the final form and approve the submission of the BSIP for Lincolnshire be delegated to the Executive Councillor for Highways, Transport and IT.

4.    That the indicative timetable for the making of an Enhanced Partnership Plan and Scheme as set out at Appendix A to the report, be noted.

5.    In respect of the statutory process under the Transport Act (2000) ("the Act") for making an Enhanced Partnership and Scheme, authority be delegated to the Executive Director – Place, in consultation with the Executive Councillor for Highways, Transport and IT, to:

·         Determine the final form of the draft proposed statutory Plan and Scheme;

·         Approve the giving of notice of the proposed statutory Plan and Scheme to operators of qualifying local services in accordance with section 138F(1)(c) of the Act;

·         Determine whether a sufficient number of operators of qualifying local services have objected to the Plan or Scheme for the purposes of section 138F(5) of the Act and the Enhanced Partnership Plans and Schemes (Objections) Regulations 2018; and

·         Approve the giving of notice under section 138F(1)(d) and the content and process for the carrying out of statutory consultation under section 138F(6) of the Act.

Consideration was given to a report by the Executive Director – Place which outlined the requirement for every Transport Authority across England to implement either an Enhanced Partnership (EP) with which to improve bus services or a Franchising Scheme.  For Lincolnshire, it was considered that an Enhanced Partnership would be the optimal choice.

In advance of the formal Enhanced Partnership, the County Council must prepare a Bus Service Improvement Plan (BSIP) by 31 October 2021.  This was a high level document which would set out the Council's ambitions and its plan to improve the bus offer in Lincolnshire, and had been developed in close collaboration with bus operators, users, the Greater Lincolnshire Local Enterprise Partnership (GLLEP), district councils and other stakeholders.  The BSIP would act as a bidding document, and would be assessed by the Department for Transport (DfT) to determine the amount of funding that the Council would receive to deliver the stated schemes and achieve the BSIP outcomes.

Following discussion by the Executive, the following points were noted:

·         In relation to encouraging bus companies to go green, there were concerns that some smaller family run companies may struggle with this.  It was noted that it would be a partnership, and so bus companies would be expected to make a contribution as well.  Some would be able to afford to invest, whilst others would not.  There would be a need for balance.

·         The average age of the fleet in Lincolnshire was 13 – 14 years, whilst the national average was 8 years.

·         The County Council would work with operators to bid for funding when it was made available, assistance would also be provided to those smaller businesses to enable them to bid for funding.

·         All the schemes included in the Plan would have the caveat that they would be delivered if funding was available.

·         It was highlighted that the County Council would not know how much funding it would get until after the proposals had been submitted.

RESOLVED

1.    That the preparation and publication of a Bus Service Improvement Plan (BSIP) for Lincolnshire be approved.

2.    That the themes and schemes proposed in the Report as the basis for the preparation of the Bus Service Improvement Plan for Lincolnshire be approved.

3.    That authority to determine the final form and approve the submission of the BSIP for Lincolnshire be delegated to the Executive Councillor for Highways, Transport and IT.

4.    That the indicative timetable for the making of an Enhanced Partnership Plan and Scheme as set out at Appendix A to the report, be noted.

5.    In respect of the statutory process under the Transport Act (2000) ("the Act") for making an Enhanced Partnership and Scheme, authority be delegated to the Executive Director – Place, in consultation with the Executive Councillor for Highways, Transport and IT, to:

·         Determine the final form of the draft proposed statutory Plan and Scheme;

·         Approve the giving of notice of the proposed statutory Plan and Scheme to operators of qualifying  ...  view the full minutes text for item 35