Agenda and minutes

Apologies for absence were received from Councillor Neil Buckley and public representatives Peter Dixon, Rob Greenland, Mike Leighton and Clare Mason.

Transport Committee Members only.

There were no disclosable pecuniary interests declared by members at the meeting.

There were no items requiring the exclusion of the press and public.

Further to minute 6, Operator Updates, further information on the park and ride usage and Connecting Leeds programme would be provided to the Sub-Committee.

Resolved:  That the minutes of the meeting held on 22 October 2018 be approved.

The Sub-Committee was advised that Councillor Mick Lyons was standing down as a Councillor in May 2019 and this would be his last meeting of the Leeds DCSC.  On behalf of the Sub-Committee, Councillor Groves thanked Councillor Lyons for all his hard work over many years and for sharing his knowledge and expertise in respect of public transport.  Dave Pearson, the Combined Authority’s Director of Transport Services paid tribute to Councillor Lyons and highlighted some of the achievements realised during his leadership as Chair of the former Passenger Transport Authority and Integrated Transport Authority.

In response, Councillor Lyons said he had been involved with the Authority in its many guises since 1985 and had seen many improvements to public transport during that time.  He thanked members and officers for their support and hoped that everyone’s hard work towards achieving the ambitions for the Leeds City Region would be successful.

The Sub-Committee was given the opportunity to raise any issues which were not covered on the agenda and the following comments were made:

·         Members were disappointed that the Cycle Hub at Leeds Station had now closed and hoped the facility would re-open once the improvement works had been completed. It was reported that the lease with Network Rail and their tenant had expired and the Sub-Committee would be advised of any future developments.

·         It was considered that the traffic signal improvements made at the junctions on Horsforth roundabout had not delivered the promised reductions in bus journey times and the concerns would be brought to the attention of LCC’s Highways Department.  It was reported that consideration was being given to making funding available through the Connecting Leeds programme to improve bus priority at these junctions.

The Sub-Committee was provided with updates from the bus and rail operators.

Northern provided an update on the long running industrial action which is continuing to disrupt Saturday rail services and the Sub-Committee expressed their disappointment that agreement had still not been reached.

It was noted that although performance had improved following the December timetable changes, issues did remain.  Members reiterated that services were still failing to operate at an acceptable level and passengers and the local economy were being severely affected. 

TransPennine Express circulated a report which provided an overview on recent developments with focus on the routes, services and stations they operate within the region.  The proposed introduction of being able to make bike reservations up to 2 hours before departure was welcomed by the Sub-Committee.

First highlighted the key points of their note which was circulated at the meeting and the following issues were raised:

·         In response to concerns regarding the reliability of digital information displays on new vehicles, First advised that they were aware of the problem and work was being undertaken to rectify this.

·         First’s engineering department had also been made aware of the issue of bells ringing more than once on some vehicles.

·         First agreed to look whether there was any flexibility to address the gaps in the timetable for Services 33/34 after 9 pm on the A65 route.

·         The Government’s scheme to provide concessionary fares passes and their associated costs to the Combined Authority was discussed.

·         First will clarify whether a monthly ticket for 16-19 year olds was available.

·         The need for better communication with passengers was raised and the work being undertaken as part of the West Yorkshire Bus Alliance was discussed.

Arriva/Yorkshire Tiger provided an update on recent service changes in the Leeds district and the Sub-Committee made the following comments:

·         The concerns raised at the previous meeting regarding Arriva’s Leeds urban ticket excluding Rothwell and Woodlesford were reiterated. 

·         The new electronic timetables in shelters which tracked 110 services were not accurate and this would be investigated.  The Combined Authority were responsible for the displays and the Sub-Committee was asked to report any specific issues.

Resolved:  That the train and bus operators’ updates be noted.

The Sub-Committee considered a report and was given a presentation on ‘Planning for Growth: The City Region Connectivity Strategy.

It was reported that the Transport Committee had endorsed the commencement of a conversation with the public and stakeholders around the new 21^st century connectivity and services technologies required to address the economic and transport challenges facing West Yorkshire, including mass transit. 

Members’ discussed the strategy and the following points were made:

·         Should the main focus be on Northern Powerhouse Rail and not faster journey times to London?

·         Looking ahead to 2033, would hope that more routes are covered.

·         Improvements to infrastructure is essential in order to deliver better services.

·         Cycling and walking infrastructure should be included – this would help to improve air quality.

·         Got to expand to improve and HS2 would provide additional capacity as it is a new railway. 

·         Better links to Leeds-Bradford airport needed.

·         Steel rail.

It was noted that subject to feedback received through the conversation, the proposed City Region Transit Network has the potential to form a key priority for delivery in the timeframe up to HS2 opening in 2033.  The importance of ensuring that connectivity addresses the needs of local communities and businesses in the whole city region was stressed. 

Members were thanked for their comments and suggestions and were asked to forward any further comments on the questionnaire provided at the meeting or by email to: governanceservices@westyorks-ca.gov.uk.

Resolved:  That the report, presentation and Sub-Committee’s feedback be noted.

The Sub-Committee considered a report on matters of information relating to the Leeds district.

Budget Update

It was noted that in setting the budget for 2019/20, it was expected to continue the £1m reduction in the Transport Levy for a second year.  The Sub-Committee was advised that difficult decisions would need to be made regarding services and the Combined Authority would be looking for efficiencies on an area by area basis.

Combined Authority Senior Roles

It was noted that Neale Wallace, Head of Transport Operations, and Diane Groom, Head of Customer Services, were leaving the organisation and the Sub-Committee sent their best wishes and thanks to them.

West Yorkshire Bus Strategy

In respect of ticketing, comment was made that travel should be affordable with a focus on young people and a simpler fares structure.

Leeds Station

In noting the temporary closure of bus stops at Leeds Station, comment was made that it was disappointing that the airport bus service could not now stop at the station although taxis were unaffected.

Service 39

It was noted that Service 39 would cease to operate from 18 February 2019.  Whilst this was disappointing, it was unlikely that an alternative operator would be willing to provide the service as three operators have been unable to make it viable.

Resolved:  That the information report be noted.