Enhanced Partnership Scheme: Bus Back Better Enhanced Partnership consultation
Consultation closed: Monday 24 January 2022 (responses had to be submitted before 11:59pm on Sunday 23 January 2022)
Consultation opened: Thursday 6 January 2022
An Enhanced Partnership Scheme can only be put in place if an associated Enhanced Partnership Plan has been made. Therefore, this document should be considered alongside the Enhanced Partnership Plan and the Bus Service Improvement Plan.
The Enhanced Partnership Scheme is the mechanism by which the commitments made in the Bus Service Improvement Plan and the Enhanced Partnership Plan will be delivered in Central Bedfordshire.
The Enhanced Partnership Plan and Scheme are made on 7 March 2022, for implementation on 1 April 2022. The Enhanced Partnership Scheme will expire on 31 March 2025. It will be subject to annual review by the Enhanced Partnership Board.
Reporting and consultation
It is proposed that the Enhanced Partnership Board will receive six-monthly progress reports on the development of the Enhanced Partnership measures and reports of the performance of the network against the targets set out in the Bus Service Improvement Plan and Enhanced Partnership Plan. Where targets have been achieved or bettered, the board will consider setting new and more challenging ones. Where targets have not been achieved, the board will consider and recommend additional actions and measures to address the under-performance. These progress reports will be published on our website.
Measures which make material changes to bus services and/or infrastructure will be subject to a public consultation process, prior to implementation, to ascertain the views of passengers, residents and other stakeholders who may be impacted by the development.
Our obligations
Facilities
Our facilities obligations cover:
- bus priority
- bus stops
- website and app
Measures
Our measures obligations cover:
- bus priority enforcement
- traffic and highways liaison
- providing subsidy to deliver a fare concession for young people
- future funding bids
Bus operator obligations
Our operators' obligations cover:
- vehicle standards
- reliability and punctuality
- multi-operator ticketing
- limited timetable changes
- co-ordination of bus services with heavy rail services
Governance – scheme variation and revocation
It is proposed that the Enhanced Partnership Board will conduct an initial, mid-year review of the Enhanced Partnership Plan and scheme, to assess whether any modifications are necessary following its first 6 months in operation. This initial review will consider the working arrangements and the monitoring and reporting procedures.
In October 2022, we will request a meeting of the Enhanced Partnership Board, to consider the review that shall complete no later than 31 October 2022.
Thereafter, the scheme will be reviewed every 6 months, by 31 March and 31 October each year, following the publication of data on progress towards targets, as required by the Bus Service Improvement Plan. This will ensure that any necessary remedial action can be taken to deliver the targets set out in the Bus Service Improvement Plan.
The review process of the Bus Service Improvement Plan, Enhanced Partnership Plan and Scheme will be conducted by us, with input from the Enhanced Partnership Board.
Any Enhanced Partnership Scheme variation or revocation will require both of the following conditions to be met:
- a simple majority vote of the board in favour of the same
- our veto process has not been invoked in response to such a vote
Our veto
We may, in exceptional circumstances, exercise a veto over the Enhanced Partnership Board's decisions, where we may reasonably believe or suspect as having anti-competitive implications.