Arriva welcomes partnership approach in draft Local Transport Bill

Arriva plc today welcomed the publication of theGovernment’s draft Local Transport Bill.

Steve Clayton, group managing director – corporate affairs,said:

We back the broad approach of encouraging operators andstakeholders to work in partnership to ensure our millions ofpassengers get the best services possible.

We know from experience on the ground that where allparties are committed to existing voluntary partnershiparrangements there are significant benefits forpassengers.

We are pleased that the draft bill clearly signals theimportance of local authorities making a contribution to buspunctuality alongside the private sector, and that the Departmentfor Transport wishes to build on the private sector’sstrengths in management, innovation and investment.

As the Secretary of State has stressed today, there isno ‘one size fits all’ when it comes to improvingservices and it is important that this is reflected in the finalbill.

There is much detail to consider and we look forward tomaking a constructive response within the consultationframework.