Sector Focus


Business Travel


Sponsored by: Chiltern Railways


Big honour for small station


By Lucy Evans Marketing Manager


Scheme gives trainees a ticket to ride the buses


A scheme giving apprentices and trainees aged 18 or under half price travel on the region’s bus, train and tram network has been launched. The move by the West Midlands


Combined Authority (WMCA) will see an extra 31,000 young people across the metropolitan area enjoy the 50 per cent discount. It will benefit those on


Bicester Village Station was named Small Station of the Year at the National Rail Awards on 21st September 2017. Bicester Village Station


opened in October 2015 as part of Chiltern’s new route between Oxford and London. In making the award, the National Rail Awards judges noted the “thoughtful customer service touch”, by the provision of foreign language signage to cater for the large numbers of customers visiting the shopping destination. They also said that the new facility sets a new, incredibly high, standard for small stations.


‘Over two million passengers make journeys through the station’


Dave Penney, Managing


Director of Chiltern Railways said: “We are very proud that Bicester Village Station has been recognised as the Small Station of the Year at the National Rail Awards. The station has seen over two million passengers make journeys through the station since opening and this award is a credit to the station staff who strive to ensure the customers come first.” Miranda Markham,


Community Relations Director of Bicester Village said: “We congratulate Chiltern


Railways on their success at the National Rail Awards. The number of overall visitors arriving by train has more than doubled since the opening of the station which has wide appeal for both domestic and international visitors and local residents.”


62 CHAMBERLINK November 2017


apprenticeships or traineeships who currently have to pay the full adult fare. Previously, only those aged between 16 and 18 and in full- time education were eligible for half price travel. The scheme was launched at the


new National College of High Speed Rail in Birmingham by Mayor of the West Midlands Andy Street. He was joined by representatives


from bus and Midland Metro operator National Express West Midlands, and West Midlands Trains, the new franchise holder for rail services in the region. There they met two apprentices


with HS2 who will benefit from the scheme. Alyssia Samra, aged 16, from Harborne, Birmingham, has just finished her GCSEs and is an apprentice in transport planning. Matthew Astley, aged 17, from


Fordhouses, Wolverhampton, is doing an apprenticeship in project management. Both are based at HS2’s Snowhill offices in Birmingham. Mr Street said: “The West Midlands Combined Authority felt there was a gap in the provision of help with travel for apprentices and trainees, which is why we have made this available.


On the buses: Alysia and Matthew with Andy Street


‘Apprentices tend to be on very low incomes so it’s only right they have the same support as people in further education’


“Apprentices tend to be on very


low incomes so it’s only right they have the same support as people in further education. “Alysia and Matthew are


precisely the young people this scheme is intended for. By giving them a helping hand now we are investing not just in their futures but also in the region’s future. “Doing all that we can to train


our young people to reach their full potential will see them learn the skills that will be the building blocks of future prosperity for the West Midlands.” The scheme will run on a trial basis for 12 months and underpins


a pledge by the mayor to support young people in finding employment and training. Cllr Roger Lawrence, the


WMCA’s lead member for transport, said: “The WMCA is committed to making bus travel more affordable for young people so it’s great to see this excellent scheme being launched. “TfWM has been working hard


to make this happen and I would urge everyone who is eligible to make the most of it.” All young people between 16 and


18 must now either be in full time education or undertake an apprenticeship or a traineeship.


Birmingham bus stop trial rolled out


A trial scheme taking little-used bus stops out of service to help speed up bus journey times for passengers on some of the busiest roads in south Birmingham is taking place. A total of 59 stops, across six routes, have been suspended from use under the six month trial. It follows a review of stops across the network by


Transport for West Midlands (TfWM), which included a consultation with members of the public. The scheme also forms part of a review of bus


services in south Birmingham and Solihull by operator National Express West Midlands (NXWM). The stops are on services 8a/8c – Inner-circle,


50 – Alcester Road, 45/47 - Pershore Road and 63 – Bristol Road. TfWM policy is for people living within the West Midlands metropolitan area to be within 400m of a served bus stop, a rule which applies to 90 per cent of the network.


However, over the years, some stops have been


installed as close as 130m apart as a result of requests from the public or local councillors, land use change, or as a legacy of former employment sites. Jon Hayes, head of network delivery for TfWM, said:


“As time has gone on many of these stops are simply no longer needed. Increasing congestion, and particularly at this time of year, is continually eating in to passenger journey times and we know that this puts people off using the bus adding further to congestion. “We need to try and break this cycle, encourage


more people to use the bus and take cars off the road. Removing bus stops we don’t need any more is one way of tackling this.” The redundant stops will not be physically


removed during the trial but notices will be fixed to inform passengers they are no longer in use. The public is being asked to leave feedback at customerservices@tfwm.org.uk or call 0345 835 8188.


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