1. Introduction
1.1 This chapter provides information about bus and coach travel, such as the numbers of passenger journeys and vehicle-kilometres, passenger receipts and local bus fare indices, the numbers of vehicles of various types and the numbers of staff employed.
1.2 The only changes to this chapter in this edition are that Table 2.6 has been expanded to show the fare indices in constant price terms, and Figure 2.4 has been revised to use the constant price indices.
2. Main Points
2.1 The main features in bus and coach travel over the past ten years are a continuing decrease in passenger journeys on local services throughout the period, and an increase in the distance travelled by vehicles, compared with the start of the period.
2.2 The number of buses and coaches in 1998-99 was about the same as in the previous year, and the overall total was 5% higher than in 1988-89. Over the period since 1988-89, there has been a substantial increase in the number of single decker buses: in 1998-99 there were 7,000 compared to 5,600 in 1988-89. In contrast, the number of double deckers fell from 3,000 in 1988-89 to 2,000 in 1998-99. (Table 2.1)
2.3 The number of passenger journeys on local bus services has continued to fall. In 1998-99 there were 413 million passenger journeys, which was 6% less than the previous year and 36% less than in 1988-89. (Table 2.2)
2.4 The distance travelled by local bus services in 1998-99 (358 million vehicle kilometres) fell by 3% compared to the previous year, but was 10% higher than in 1988-89. The distance travelled by other (non-local) bus services also decreased in 1998-99, by 11% from the previous year, to 160 million vehicle-kilometres, 4% more than in 1988-89. (Table 2.3)
2.5 There were 16,700 staff employed by bus and coach operators in 1998-99, slightly fewer than the previous year and 15% fewer than in 1988-89. (Table 2.4)
2.6 The total of bus passenger receipts, from local and other services, in 1998-99 was £421 million, in real terms 0.2% higher than the previous year and 4% less than in 1988-89. Passenger receipts on local bus services fell slightly (0.7%) in real terms over the previous year. However, receipts on other (non-local) services rose by 3% in real terms. (Table 2.5)
2.7 Local bus fares in 1998-99 increased over the previous year by about 4.5% in both Scotland and Great Britain as a whole. Since 1988-89 fares have increased, in current price terms, by 80% in Scotland and 81% in GB; over the same period the Retail Prices Index rose by 51%. Therefore, local bus fares have risen by about 20% in real terms over the past ten years.(Table 2.6)
3. Notes and Definitions
3.1 "Local" bus service: one which is available to the general public, where passengers pay separate fares and travel a radial distance no greater than 15 miles / 24 kilometres from the point of boarding.
3.2 "Other services": include contract, private hire, express journeys, excursions and tours which are not registered as local services.
3.3 Passenger journeys: each trip made by a passenger on one vehicle on one route counts as a separate journey. Return tickets therefore count as two passenger journeys. The numbers of passenger journeys using season tickets or travel passes may be estimated by operators.
3.4 Vehicle kilometres: estimates include some categories of empty running of buses (eg between garage and terminus) but exclude driver instruction and vehicle testing.
3.5 Local bus fare indices: Information about the size of each fares change is supplied by a panel of large operators. Indices are obtained by averaging charges using weights based on receipts from passengers (excluding concessionary fare reimbursement from local authorities). In theory, therefore, the index measures the change in the average charge to the fare-paying passenger.
3.6 Commercial services: are those run without direct financial support from a local transport authority. They are still eligible for central Government subsidy in the form of fuel duty rebate and (where applicable) for concessionary fare reimbursement from local transport authorities.
3.7 Subsidised services: are those considered socially necessary and run under contract to local transport authorities with some direct subsidy. They include a few services subsidised without competitive tendering, under Section 91 of the Transport Act 1985 (‘de minimis’ arrangements).
3.8 Concessionary fare reimbursement: Local authorities and Passenger Transport Authorities are able to provide concessionary fare schemes for groups such as elderly people and disabled people and children. Authorities reimburse operators for revenue lost as a result of their participation in the schemes, after taking into account income from the extra travel generated. The reimbursement by authorities should be seen as a subsidy to the passenger, not to the operator. These schemes should not be confused with the reductions offered to children, for example, by many operators on commercial grounds.
3.9 Staff employed: Platform staff comprise drivers, conductors and any other on-vehicle staff; maintenance staff include all employees engaged on cleaning, repair, service or maintenance of vehicles, while other staff include administrative staff. There may be some duplication of functions, particularly amongst the smaller operators.
4. Sources
4.1 The Public Service Vehicle Operator Annual Return
4.1.1 The basis for most of the statistics in this chapter is the annual returns which a sample of Public Service Vehicle operators make to the Department of the Environment, Transport and the Regions (DETR).
4.1.2 With effect from the 1997-98 survey, the sample includes all operators who are licensed to run 30 or more vehicles, plus random samples of smaller operators (selected with probabilities depending upon their numbers of vehicles - e.g. 5% of those with one vehicle, 20% of those with five vehicles, 40% of those with 10-14 vehicles).
4.1.3 The figures for each smaller operator are "grossed-up" using a grossing-up factor which is the inverse of the achieved sampling fraction. For example, as roughly 5% of the smallest operators respond to the survey, the grossing-up factor for them will be about 20. (While the aim may be to sample 1-in-20 of the smallest operators, the survey is unlikely to obtain returns from exactly 1 in 20 of them: for example, if there were 250 such operators, and 12 of them were chosen for the survey and made returns, the grossing-up factor would be 250 divided by 12, which is about 20.8)
4.1.4 The survey’s design aims to achieve the required coverage for Great Britain as a whole. The sampling is based purely upon the size of the operator’s fleet (in terms of the number of licence discs) and takes no account of where in Great Britain the operator is based. The figures for Scotland for non-local services are derived from the returns made by the operators who are based in Scotland, and so will include services into England which are run by operators based in Scotland, and will exclude services into Scotland which are run by operators based in England. (NB: a large group, such as Stagecoach, is not treated as a single operator: there will be a separate statistical return for each of its subsidiary companies.)
5. Further Information
5.1 The Scottish Executive statistical bulletin "Bus and Coach Statistics" contains further information on Scottish bus and coach services, including more detailed comparisons with Great Britain. More details of this publication are given under "Scottish Executive Transport Statistics Publications".
5.2 DETR’s "Focus on Public Transport" volume and its "Bulletin of Public Transport Statistics" include some more detailed analyses of GB bus and coach statistics.
5.2.1 Enquiries regarding the statistics should be made to Paul O’Hara of the Department of the Environment, Transport and the Regions (Tel: 020 7944 3076).