£7.8 million awarded to help make Harrogate Bus Company’s fleet all-electric

Harrogate Bus Company and North Yorkshire County Council have been awarded £7.8 million as part of a joint bid to make the firm’s fleet all-electric with the delivery of 39 zero-emission buses.

The project will cost almost £20 million in total, with around £11.5 million being invested by Transdev – the French parent firm of Harrogate Bus Company.

It will see 20 single-decker and 19 double-decker buses provided over the next three years, as well as the supporting charging infrastructure.

All the new vehicles will have next stop announcements, USB power and free Wi-Fi.

The joint bid was originally made for more than £8 million, and the £7.8 million received will be used to improve vehicles on routes, including the high-profile 36 from Ripon through Harrogate to Leeds.

The money is coming from the government’s £200 million Zero Emission Bus Regional Area fund, which is delivering almost 1,000 new buses across the country – including 221 in Yorkshire.

Criticism of Harrogate’s level of funding

Councillor Don Mackenzie, executive member for access at North Yorkshire County Council, said the successful bid signalled the authority’s intent to foster a more environmentally-friendly generation of public transport.

His comments follow repeated criticism against the county council over its high proportion of bids for travel-related funding being focused on Harrogate, due to the town being the largest centre of population.

When asked if other areas of the county would see similar schemes, Cllr Mackenzie said:

“Clearly we would be keen to convert all buses that are used in North Yorkshire eventually to electric.”

Earlier this month, Cllr Mackenzie also said he was “confident” that Harrogate would still be able to trial a park and ride service despite funding cuts to a separate government scheme.

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The Bus Back Better initiative is seen as key to the government’s “levelling up” agenda, but has seen its funding more than halved from £3 billion to £1.4 billion.

New bus lanes

North Yorkshire County Council has bid for £116 million from the scheme to fund its Bus Service Improvement Plan, which also includes new bus lanes, more cash support for services and other upgrades across the county.

However, Cllr Mackenzie previously said it was unlikely that the county council would get “anything near” the full amount it bid for. He added:

“Even if we get reduced funding – which is likely – I’m confident there will be money for the various interventions we want to make in Harrogate, including a pilot for a park and ride.”

The county council’s Bus Service Improvement Plan includes £23 million for new bus lanes, £74 million for other infrastructure changes and £14 million for support for bus services.

There is also an aim to increase the 12.1 million passenger journeys in North Yorkshire in the year to March 2019 to 14.3 million journeys by 2030.

Free Harrogate buses every Sunday in January and February

Shoppers will be able to take advantage of free buses every Sunday in January and February to give businesses in Harrogate town centre a much-needed boost.

Free buses will be available on the electric services only – on the 2, 3 and 6.

The Harrogate Business Improvement District (BID) has once again sponsored scheme, called the Sunday Freeway, after partnering with the Harrogate Bus Company in 2020 and 2019.

Tomorrow also marks the final day of Harrogate BID’s free parking initiative on Mondays to Thursdays after 3pm at the Victoria multi-storey car park.

With coronavirus cases on the rise and further restrictions on the agenda, this free service is expected to entice more visitors into Harrogate.

Back in 2019 the free Sunday buses generated a 90% rise in the number of customers travelling compared with the same period the year before.

Sara Ferguson, Harrogate BID chair and business owner, said:

“This is the third time we have partnered with our local bus operator, and on both previous occasions it helped to increase the number of passengers.

“This year, we have chosen January and February, which can be quiet months for the retail and hospitality sectors.

“Harrogate town centre is well worth a visit at any time of the year, and we hope the added incentive of free bus travel will make it even more appealing.”

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The Harrogate Bus Company CEO Alex Hornby said:

“We’re delighted that Harrogate BID are able to again work in partnership with us to support our ‘Sunday Freeway’ on our Harrogate electrics buses.

“Free Sunday travel on our pioneering Harrogate electrics buses will make it easier to support our local economy and help keep our town’s traders in business into 2022.

“It’s been an incredibly challenging time for Harrogate’s businesses, with previous lockdowns and now the prospect of further restrictions.

“More than ever, it’s now up to us all to support them in the vital first few months of the New Year by taking advantage of free travel on Harrogate electrics buses.”

Live: Harrogate district traffic and travel

Good morning everyone, it’s Connor back with you to take you through to Christmas with traffic and travel updates on this cold Wednesday morning.

If you spot anything, let me know on 01423 276197. Let’s help everyone have a smooth journey today.

These blogs are brought to you by The HACS Group.

9am – Full Update 

That is all from me this morning but I will be back with updates from 6.30am tomorrow.

Roads

The roads are starting to become busy but seem to be quieter than usual. Keep checking back for more updates but here is a list of places to avoid.

Road closures:

Temporary lights:

Trains

Buses

8.30am – Full Update 

Roads

The roads are starting to become busy but seem to be quieter than usual. Keep checking back for more updates but here is a list of places to avoid.

Road closures:

Temporary lights:

Trains

Buses

8am – Full Update 

Roads

The roads are starting to become busy but seem to be quieter than usual. Keep checking back for more updates but here is a list of places to avoid.

Road closures:

Temporary lights:

Trains

Buses

7.30am – Full Update 

Roads

The roads are running well so far early this morning with not many out driving so far. Keep checking back for more updates but here is a list of places to avoid.

Road closures:

Temporary lights:

Trains

Buses

7am – Full Update 

Roads

The roads are running well so far early this morning with not many out driving so far. Keep checking back for more updates but here is a list of places to avoid.

Road closures:

Temporary lights:

Trains

Buses

6.30am – Full Update 

Roads

The roads are running well so far early this morning with not many out driving so far. Keep checking back for more updates but here is a list of places to avoid.

Road closures:

Temporary lights:

Trains

Buses

Christmas timetables for bus and train services in Harrogate district

Several services across the Harrogate district will change over the festive period including some days where services will be suspended.

Here’s a day-by-day list of the festive timetable across the district:

Friday, December 24:

Saturday, December 25:

Sunday, December 26:

Monday, December 27 and Tuesday, December 28:

Wednesday, December 29 and Thursday, December 30:

Friday, December 31:

Saturday, January 1:

Sunday, January 2 and Monday, January 3:

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Fears for rural bus services post-pandemic

Concerns are mounting for traditional bus services in rural areas as passenger numbers remain well below pre-pandemic rates.

While numerous services were kept afloat across North Yorkshire with £1.5m of subsidies from the county council before covid, the county’s transport boss has stated many are now facing “great pressure” due to a lack of passengers.

Bus demand in Great Britain maintained its downward trend in the quarter before the pandemic, falling by 2.7 per cent, according to statistics published by the Department for Transport, but since covid the number of passengers using North Yorkshire services has dropped by about 30 per cent.

North Yorkshire County Council’s older people’s champion Councillor Caroline Dickinson questioned whether the pandemic had led to a long-term shift in behaviour away from public to private transport.

The member for Northallerton said bus user groups were wanting more bus services in rural areas.

North Yorkshire County Council’s executive member for access, Councillor Don Mackenzie responded by issuing reassurances that the authority had launched initiatives to counter the drop in passengers.

He said alongside the Yorbus initiative, which the authority hopes to roll out elsewhere to improve access to public transport, the council was looking to develop services that were better value for money and more effective as part of its bus services improvement plan, valued at £116m over eight years.

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Cllr Mackenzie warned the council would always focus its available funds on where it would achieve the strongest outcomes.

He said:

“Clearly bus services, like rail services, have suffered as a result of covid. I understand passenger numbers are still well below where they were before covid came along.

“We’re looking at something like 70 per cent patronage on bus services and because of that the commercial viability of especially rural services remains under great pressure.”

Ripon service

The executive also heard the first three months of Yorbus, its demand responsive travel pilot in the rural area surrounding Bedale, Ripon and Masham, had “exceeded expectations” and achieved the majority of its targets expected at six to 12 months in the first three months of service.

An officers’ report to the meeting stated:

“Feedback from customers has, on the whole, been extremely positive, and the high levels of customer satisfaction are reflected in the number of repeat passengers using the service.

“During the quarter, 98.5 per cent of all completed bookings were made via the customer app and 1,541 accounts were created in the first three months, against a target of 171.”

Cllr Mackenzie added:

“At the moment we invest £1.5m a year subsidising rural bus services and in addition to that £7m a year on bus passes under the national concessionary travel scheme.

“We are doing plenty for it, but inevitably value for money will come into this. Our ultimate aim is to make rural bus services much more viable by improving patronage.”

Driver shortage causes bus cancellations in Harrogate district

A Harrogate district bus company has said a shortage of drivers has forced it to cancel “a small number” of services.

Transdev, which operates the Harrogate Bus Company, said in a statement today is has 95 trainee drivers waiting to get out on the roads.

It said the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency, which conducts tests, was taking three times longer than usual to confirm test dates and provide licences.

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Transdev has said it has been forced to cancel 0.8% of services for the Harrogate Bus Company as a result.

Delays to drive training is a national problem. The Confederation of Passenger Transport has warned that the delays have caused a shortage of 4,000 drivers.

Alex Hornby, chief executive of Transdev, said:

“We understand entirely how frustrating it is when journeys are cancelled, and it’s the last thing we want to do.

“Right now, we have 95 new colleagues at The Academy, our in-house driver training facility in Yorkshire and Lancashire.

“They just want to be out on the road serving our customers – but instead, they’re waiting over three times longer than usual to get licences

“Most of our buses are running as normal and we are attracting new drivers, so the current delays to licensing and testing are very frustrating.”

Transdev has asked the government to speed up the licence application process and free up the availability of theory and practical tests.

£20m bid to replace Harrogate buses with electric fleet

An entire fleet of buses in Harrogate could be replaced with electric models as part of an ambitious £20 million bid.

North Yorkshire County Council (NYCC) is working with the Harrogate Bus Company, part of Transdev, on a bid for more than £8 million in government money.

Transdev has also proposed to prop up the bid with £11.5 million of its own funds.

If successful, Harrogate would welcome a total of 39 zero-emission buses over the next three years.

The buses come with next stop announcements, USB power and free wifi.

There would be an even split of single-decker and double-decker electric buses which would come with supporting charging infrastructure.

Now, the Department for Transport (DfT) has asked the council to submit a business case for the project.

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The bid must be submitted by the end of January 2022 with a decision from the DfT expected by March 2022.

Cllr Don Mackenzie, the executive member for access at NYCC, said:

“We’re near the start of a competitive process and success is not guaranteed, but this action illustrates the scale of our ambition and commitment.

“This project aligns with the decarbonisation ambitions we share with partners across the region to protect the environment and counter climate change.

“It would accelerate improvements in air quality, as zero emission vehicles produce no tail pipe emissions, bringing health benefits to residents and visitors.”

Alex Hornby, CEO at Transdev, said:

“We have already created a low-emission bus fleet in Harrogate thanks to the huge investment we have made in the past few years.

“We hope this bid will lead to the next exciting step of our vision to create a completely zero-emission bus network, powered by a fully-electric fleet.

“With our partners at North Yorkshire County Council, we aim to create further improvements in infrastructure.

“This comes at a time when we believe our town is ready to embrace more sustainable forms of travel.”

‘Strong support’ for more Harrogate bus lanes

Harrogate councillors have signalled their strong support for ideas including more bus lanes and a smart ticketing system to boost use of public transport.

Members of Harrogate Borough Council’s overview and scrutiny commission will put the ideas to North Yorkshire County Council to support a multi-million pound bid for government cash, which could help pave the way for a greener transport.

The ideas, which also include more electric buses and more frequent services in rural areas, are part of a wider move to reduce car travel.

But after years of cuts to services and declining passenger numbers, there are questions over how willing motorists will be to make the switch to public transport.

Speaking at a meeting on Monday, Cllr Michael Harrison, the Conservative representative for Killinghall and Hampsthwaite, said: 

“All these ideas to make buses more attractive are clearly welcome but we must not kid ourselves that if people do not use them and they are just running empty tins of fresh air, then eventually they will fail.

“We need to be realistic about running empty buses because the funding will always run out if no-one is using them.”

£7m a year on bus passes

North Yorkshire County Council is the area’s public transport authority and subsidises around £1.5 million a year to keep services running.

It also spends about £7 million a year on bus passes for the elderly and disabled, as well as their carers.

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The county council is currently drawing up bidding proposals for the government’s new bus strategy, under which £3 billion is to be made available to make buses across the country cheaper and easier to use.

The bid is being prepared through a Bus Service Improvement Plan and so-called enhanced partnerships where the county council will agree to infrastructure improvements in return for better services from bus companies.

Cllr Phil Ireland, cabinet member for carbon reduction and sustainability at Harrogate Borough Council, said the proposals would play a key part in funding a greener future and highlighted the importance of collaboration between Harrogate’s two bus companies – Transdev and Connexions.

He said: 

“These two key pieces of work will unlock the potential of future funding via the national bus strategy, so it is vital that the county prepare these and that we feed in Harrogate Borough Council’s views.

“We have particularly discussed the integration of tickets and had a long debate about trying to resolve the impasse between Transdev and Connexions.

“I’m no miracle worker and I can’t guarantee we will be able to overcome that problem.

“But it is important that we do get this integration moving forward and get collaboration between bus providers in the district if we are going to persuade people to discard their cars and use public transport more frequently.”

Park and ride

Under the plans for smart ticketing, passengers would be able to use their tickets on different modes of transport and with different travel companies.

Councillors have also signalled their strong support for a Harrogate park and ride scheme, which county council officials are currently looking into. There are two potential sites for this – land near Pannal Golf Club and another site near Buttersyke Bar roundabout south of the village.

It comes as the county council is currently piloting its on-demand bus service, YorBus, which allows app users to book and track services on-demand in the Ripon, Bedale and Masham areas.

Since its launch in July, 726 journeys have been completed with an average customer rating of 4.9 out of 5.

More bus lanes needed to boost Harrogate public transport, says council

More bus lanes and a smart ticketing system are some of the suggestions being put forward by Harrogate Borough Council to boost use of public transport.

The council’s overview and scrutiny commission will meet on Monday to discuss the ideas, which also include more frequent services in rural areas and more electric buses as part of a bid to reduce car travel.

The ideas will form part of a multi-million pound bid for government cash, which is being prepared by North Yorkshire County Council – the area’s public transport authority.

Cllr Don Mackenzie, executive member for access at the county council, said he believes bus services in Harrogate are among “the best in the country” but he added there was still room for improvement.

He said: 

“Where we face challenges is in our rural areas where passenger numbers have not been sufficient enough to allow bus operators to run a commercially-viable service. That is why the county council has had to step in.

“Currently, we subsidise bus services to the tune of £1.5 million a year and we are committed to keeping that figure in place for years to come.

“We also provide 127,000 bus passes to the elderly and disabled, as well as their carers, and that costs us around £7 million a year.

“But with inflation the £1.5 million buys less and less each year so we are looking at other options.

“I welcome the fact that this issue has gone to the overview and scrutiny commission – I would like to hear their views.”

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Under the government’s new bus strategy, £3 billion is to be made available to make buses across the country cheaper and easier to use.

It is hoped these targets will be met through so-called enhanced partnerships, where councils agree to infrastructure improvements in return for better services from bus companies.

The county council agreed to this in June and is now drawing up proposals through a Bus Service Improvement Plan which will be published by the end of October.

Smart ticketing

In a report to Monday’s meeting, David Stannard, strategic transport planner at Harrogate Borough Council, said the authority would like to see the introduction of a smart ticketing system where passes can be used on different modes of transport.

He said: 

“Simple and easy fare systems should be encouraged across operators and integration with other transport modes needs to be considered.

“In the Harrogate district context, this could include linking bus travel with the existing car club and rail services as well as active mode provision.”

Another suggestion was more bus lanes, which Mr Stannard said would “improve journey times and reliability – making buses more attractive than the private car”.

There is also strong support for a Harrogate park and ride scheme, which county council officials are currently looking into. There are two potential sites for this: land near Pannal Golf Club and another site near Buttersyke Bar roundabout south of the village.

£20 million bid

It comes as the county council has submitted an expression of interest bid to the government to make all of Harrogate Bus Company’s fleet zero-emissions.

If successful, the £20 million bid will fund 39 new buses and other infrastructure works.

The county council is also currently piloting its on-demand bus service, YorBus, which allows app users to book and track services on-demand in the Ripon, Bedale and Masham areas.

Since its launch in July, 726 journeys have been completed with an average customer rating of 4.9 out of 5.

Cllr Mackenzie said:

“We are delighted with the success of YorBus in the short time it has been running – the statistics speak for themselves. It has been very well-received and enhances our existing public transport network.”

Could Harrogate get its first bus lane?

Harrogate’s first bus lane could be built on Leeds Road from Pannal towards the town centre, according to North Yorkshire County Council.

The council has had long held ambitions to build a park and ride scheme in Pannal to reduce traffic and ease congestion.

Land near Pannal Golf Club and near Buttersyke Bar roundabout south of Pannal have been identified as potential sites for the park and ride.

A key factor in the location is that it is on the 36 bus route that runs regularly between Leeds and Harrogate. Leeds Road is one of the main routes into Harrogate.

Cllr Don Mackenzie told the Stray Ferret that creating bus lanes in Harrogate town centre itself would be a “struggle” due to the road layout.

He added one could be built on parts of Leeds Road if the park and ride proposal comes to fruition but stressed the plans were still at an early stage.

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Meanwhile, the council is putting together a bid for a share of the government’s £3bn investment in bus services that is part of its National Bus Strategy.

The government has told all councils to publish a Bus Service Improvement Plan before November.

Speaking to the Local Democracy Service earlier this week, Cllr Mackenzie, said:

“In Harrogate we’re looking at park and ride, which will involve a bus contract, and we’re looking at bus priority systems such as bus lanes. So the National Bus Strategy just gives us an extra incentive to press on.

“We would be totally supportive of avoidance of the motor car and reliance upon public transport, whether that is road or rail or sustainable transport with a bit more walking and cycling.”