Transport User Voice August 2023 – Looking to the future

19 July 2023

An update from the Bristol Board Meeting

How can the user experience be improved for people living in Bristol and the West of England?

This was the challenge from our Board as it met with operators and transport authorities in Bristol at this month’s meeting in public.

Part of that focus were the opportunities and challenges facing transport users in Bristol and the West of England, and in particular our Board members wanted to know how the sector was:

• Championing the needs of transport users today: how are providers improving performance?
• Putting transport users are at the centre of future policy and decisions: how will they improve services in Bristol and across the west of England?
• What does the future hold for transport users and how can we inspire better passenger focused services.

Transport Focus senior stakeholder manager, Louise Collins provided our insights on the importance of local bus services, and headlines from our most recent concessionary travel and barriers to bus use surveys.

Great Western Railway, First bus, Network Rail and National Highways updated us on recent improvements for users, how they are adapting to changing travel habits and plans to deliver a better customer experience.

With a wide responsibility for public transport services in the region, both the head of integrated transport, Peter Mann and Malcolm Parsons, from the West of England Combined Authority outlined the ambitions for public transport in the region. They are building on the progress already made but with a greater focus on the passengers. Key to their work going forward will be the challenge of the climate emergency and reducing the carbon impact of services.

Melanie Watson the co-chair of the Bristol Transport Board, gave some interesting insights into how the Bristol as one of the major cities in the region is delivering against its One City Plan. Key to the plan were a series of transport goals around their Sustainable Cities and Communities and Well Connected City themes.

You can watch back a recording of the Board meeting here.

 

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