It looks as if West of England metro mayor Helen Godwin is firmly opposed to bus franchising in the region and does not want the public to know how strong the case is or what the costs might be.
The Bristol Post reports:
Campaigners calling for bus services in Bristol and the West of England to be brought back under public control say those in charge of the region are keeping a report into the idea out of the public domain.
…with campaigners saying one reason could be because it revealed that franchising the bus services in Bristol would be achievable.
The Post explains that last year the West of England Combined Authority (WECA) commissioned ARUP to compile a report into bus franchising, which was delivered to it in April.
(more…)Open Government campaigner and bus franchise supporter Joseph Lloyd submitted a request under the Freedom of Information Act for a copy of the report to be published, but WECA has now refused.
WECA chiefs said releasing the report could ‘negatively impact an organisation’s commercial interests’ – which can only mean the West’s two main bus companies First and Stagecoach.
Transport Insights 