Subway will see longer opening but not yet says SPT boss

WHETHER it is the private car or public transport there is nothing more likely to get people animated and often frustrated than getting from A to B.

SPT has a role in co-ordinating planning and delivery of public transport, it operates the Subway and manages the zonecard ticket for bus, rail and subway.

With many competing firms, both public and commercial, operating in the Glasgow region Valerie Davidson, argues a ‘controlling mind’ is needed to oversee public transport and sees SPT as the body best able to fill that role.

Glasgow has a wide public transport network with multiple bus operators, ScotRail and the Subway covering the wider city region.

Ms Davidson, like most people, is aware it is not perfect and needs to be better integrated to make it more efficient and more affordable to satisfy current users' aspirations and, crucially, to attract more people and entice them away from reliance on the private motor car.

SUBWAY

Two new trains, the first of an entirely new fleet, have been introduced on the Subway.

Signalling work will follow to pave the way for extended hours and later Sunday opening.

Staffing and track and tunnel maintenance are the two issues cited that prevent a change in the current hours.  

On the new trains, Ms Davidson said:  “We’re going to operate a mixed fleet. Others are due to be phased in.

She added: “They all have to go through a safety regime. We are still operating on our old signalling and then we’ll be installing the signalling which is all designed but it has to be installed.

“We've been quite clear, we're committed to longer opening. We've been absolutely clear about that.

“But to get to that, we have to go through all these difficult phases. And we have to go through that process of conversations with our staff, we have to think about how we're going to maintain those tunnels.

“Those tunnels are 130 years old. We're right in the guts of all this at the moment, but we're absolutely committed to that and that actually is part of the determination for the team that are working on it."

The "working assumption" she said is Sunday is a normal day.

She added: “I know it's frustrating. It's no more frustrating for anybody more than me, trust me.”

It may be small compared to other underground systems around the world but the Subway is an integral part of the city’s transport network.

It carries around 13 million passengers a year and serves people from a far wider area than the location of the station.

She said: “Something like around 50% of the subway patronage doesn't originate in Glasgow city. That's a demonstration of its importance to the wider network.”

As no new stations or track has been added to the Subway since it first opened in the 19th century, there have been calls for extensions to the east and north.

Expanding on the two tunnels and 15 stations is highly unlikely.

Ms Davidson said previous estimates were close to £10bn for an extension leading her to conclude it is “not financially feasible”.

Instead, she said, connecting the Subway to an improved wider public transport network is the more achievable and practical solution.

She said: “For me, it's about the opportunity for better connections and integration.”

 “The importance to the network is key.”

TICKETING

Glasgow lags behind other European cities in having a single, affordable smart ticket used on all forms of public transport.

The number of competing firms is an issue when developing something that works for the public

Ms Davidson said: “Technology is not the issue. You’ve got an integrated ticket already, but it's in paper form. It's a zone card. It's been there for 30 years and we’re right in the guts of making it smart.

“If what people mean is a more affordable ticket, that will come down to, again, money.

“Take a Zone Card. You sell the ZoneCard and in there, you've got ScotRail, you've got SPT and a host of bus operators who all want a share of the pot.

“To make it more affordable will come down to how much money is put into transport.”

During Cop 26 there was a multi-modal integrated ticket for delegates “but” Ms Davidson points out “that there was funding behind it. Somebody paid for it.

She said: “If you genuinely want the integration it comes down to funding and comes down to powers.”

She adds: "Who is the controlling mind over all of the operators?

"London has TfL as one body to determine that. It comes back to powers and funding."

BUS

Reform of the structure of bus operations has been high on the public transport agenda

Many people call for publicly-owned bus firms and some politicians have said a bus franchising model is the future.

Ms Davidson is not convinced, as yet.

She said: “I am not saying we are heading there (franchising)”

“Other options need to be explored”, she said.

Ms Davidson said: “You’ve got municipal operations, you need buses. You need depots, etc.

“You’ve got franchising, you’ve got partnerships or you stay the same, but we've already made the case for change, so something has to change.

“You need to consider all the benefits of all of those options, but there are risks with all those options as well.”

One risk is the public takes the revenue risk with municipal ownership.

She added: “I'm very careful with everyone to say any decision has to be based on evidence and a fuller understanding of the pros and the cons and the risks associated with it.”

Whatever the solution she said buses need more space on the road.

She said: “There is nothing more frustrating than sitting in the bus in the same queue of traffic as the car.”

“It is not anti-car” she is quick to add. “It's about recognising the right thing for the right space, but to get people onto the bus you need to make the bus efficient.

“You need to give it space, because actually if it's suddenly quicker you'll persuade people to use it. Because that's what's important.”

Whatever the future of public transport, Ms Davidson is clear there must be better coordination on a regional level an overarching authority needs to be given the powers to bring it about.

"Transport doesn't stop at a local authority boundary", she said.

And she sees SPT as an organisation capable of filling that role.

"My view is the regional transport authority is the right place but that conversation has to be had."