——– Forwarded Message ——–
| Subject: | Re: Bus Service Information for Parish Clerks |
|---|---|
| Date: | Mon, 6 Mar 2023 18:27:35 +0000 |
| From: | Jackie Head |
Dear Parish Clerk
further to this email with Q& As written on January 27th, we wanted to give you an update on how things are developing with the introduction of Demand Responsive Transport (DRT) as things have moved on from this original information.
Our group continues to have a joint weekly meeting with B&NES & WECA transport planners, where we have been able to raise issues and ask questions. We have lobbied hard for the retention of the 672 and/or for the introduction of other new fixed route services, and for help to be offered to the public for transitioning people to DRT.
Given the fast pace of change, and the fact that we are a voluntary group, means we don’t have the capacity to relay all the things we are learning to Parish Councils but are instead updating our Facebook group on a daily basis and using this as a place where people can ask questions and we will seek to find answers. We would therefore recommend that you consider identifying someone from within the Parish Council who can update themselves with the existing posts on this page and check in regularly for updates.
For those who were unable to make the Chew Valley Area Forum meeting, it does include lots of information about the transition so we would recommend watching the recording (Transport is mentioned from about 47 minutes in):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CPlfc2yJOjA but you will notice that final plans are still evolving.
We are told that the official communications about DRT will launch on 14th March and we have passed on your contacts to WECA and recommended that Parish Councils are a key part of the information network.
One of the things we are doing as a group is gathering the contact details of people who are willing to be ‘Early Adopters’ of the DRT service, who can report back on their experiences and help feed back any issues so that improvements can be made. We would be grateful if you would pass on this information to your communities and ask them to email jch.221@gmail.com if they are interested in becoming Early Adopters.
We trust this is information is helpful in enabling you to transition people from fixed route buses and car use to DRT. It is a crucial moment for our community to grasp the nettle of really reducing the carbon impact of transport in the Chew Valley.
Warm wishes
Jackie Head
on behalf of CVAF C&NEWG (Sustainable Transport Sub-group)
Dear Clerk
Chew Valley Area Forum Climate & Nature Emergency Sustainable Transport Working Group are working closely with B&NES & WECA to ensure that accurate information is communicated about changes to bus services in the Chew Valley that will be happening from April.
Things are still evolving so information I am attaching here will need to be updated as things evolve and move into the public domain.
We have created a Facebook Group as a space to gather a community of people wanting to use public transport in the Chew Valley, where we can disseminate information ‘from the horses mouth’ of our regular contacts with B&NES & WECA. We are now having joint meetings with them weekly (and at the moment several phone calls and emails a day!)
Please can you circulate these Q & A guides to changes, and the Facebook group link through your usual channels and post on your notice boards/website etc )
In particular we would like to communicate these 3 messages :If you, or someone you know relies on 640, 672, 752, or 754, please email Jackie jch.221@gmail.com or phone 07900 641 839 so that we can collate information about the impact of imminent bus changes and link you to support for your travel needs.
DRT is funded by Bus Service Improvement Plan funding and this is for 2 years from 3rd April. The service needs to become commercially viable within this time in order to be considered for future funding beyond this. We MUST use it in every community to make it commercially viable within 2 years, or there will be NO public transport in the Chew Valley.
The virtual platform also gathers information cumulatively across time, that will be used to consider what services will be needed in 2 years time when the funding for this trial ends. If your community doesn’t use it the system will assume there is no public transport need in your Parish.
Appeals are presently being made to WECA about the 2 shuttle buses that were progressed to tender and bid by WECA but then withdrawn, so we will update you if these get a reprieve.
B&NES/WECA are keen that no person, or community, is left behind.Warm wishesJackie
- Posted: 6th March 2023