MIDLAND BLUEBIRD
FIRST BUS A FOCUS ON FIRST MIDLAND BLUEBIRD ANNUAL REPORT APRIL 2016 - MARCH 2017
FIRST SOUTH YORKSHIRE
A FOCUS ON SHEFFIELD ANNUAL REPORT APRIL 2014 - MARCH 2015
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I am pleased to present our annual report for 2016 in which you will find details concerning your local transport business, the developments which have taken place over the previous 12 months and our plans going forward. Our vision is to provide transport solutions for an increasingly congested world. We are locally focussed, working with stakeholders, customers and colleagues to encourage greater use of public transport in Scotland. The introduction of a further 19 new double decker ‘green’ vehicles for First Scotland East during 2016 took the total investment in fleet to £6.4m in recent years. All of our new vehicles feature the latest technology, local branding and are all achieving year on year customer journey growth. The bus is very much a viable alternative to other modes of transport and when compared specifically to rail, the subsidy per passenger journey is significantly lower. The bus therefore represents a cost effective way of helping grow local economies and connect communities whilst supporting our shared objectives with partners to improve air quality.
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The business has faced challenges in recent years and, following full consultation, depots based in East Lothian were sold to Lothian Buses. This has allowed us to focus on our core inter urban market and this is where we have witnessed real growth. All of our routes can now be tracked in real time for arrival at bus stops and mobile ticketing was also introduced in 2016 too.
We continue to work with Local Authorities to sign additional Quality Partnerships, the ultimate aim being to ensure the bus network meets our customers’ expectations, encourages less use of the car and greater use of public transport for non-car users.
I hope you enjoy reading our report, please get in touch if you have any comments or questions.
Paul McGowan Managing Director
MIDLAND BLUEBIRD
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Low emission vehicles We continue to invest in our fleet helping improve air quality in the communities we serve with lower vehicle emissions. This year we made improvements to the fleet through cascades from other depots. Last year we added 26 Euro 6 low emission vehicles and in the previous year we added 9 StreetLite Micro Hybrids Euro 5. In total this brings the number of low carbon certified buses to 35.
mTickets app
Over 150% increase in mTickets volume growth We were pleased to see an increase of over 150% in sales of mTickets across our Scotland East (West Lothian, Stirling & Falkirk) services compared to last year. The introduction of a ticket sharing functionality this year has enabled parents to buy tickets and transfer them to their child’s handset.
WiFi 66 First Scotland East vehicles are fitted with WiFi. Free WiFi helps to make our customers’ journeys more enjoyable and productive while on the move – by keeping them connected.
550 Staff Buses carry more passengers than all other forms of public transport combined in the UK and help to generate billions of pounds annually for our local economies. Our team of 550 colleagues employed across Bannockburn, Balfron and Larbert depots work hard to deliver the best service for our customers.
Did you know‌?
Our customers made over 12.1million journeys
Our buses are vital in keeping communities connected and keeping people moving. Operating from three depots: Bannockburn, Balfron, and Larbert, our fleet of 200 vehicles travelled 10.1 million miles across our network.
98%
MoT pass rate Our 200 buses are fuelled and cleaned every night at our depots and are given a full inspection every month with our engineers achieving a first time MOT pass rate of 98%
MIDLAND BLUEBIRD
99.66% Reliability
We work hard to deliver the best service we can for customers and in 2016/17 we operated 99.66% of our planned mileage. Our drivers help identify any problem areas and, together with our partners, we put measures in place to become as punctual and reliable as possible. Service delivery statistics for First Scotland East show that we operated an average of 99.72% of our scheduled mileage in the first 3 months of this year with punctuality at 94.3% for the same time period.
Technology We are forward thinking. Our investment in real time passenger information, WiFi and mobile ticketing are just some of the ways we are working to make things simple, seamless and smart for our customers.
Customer Satisfaction 86% We’re pleased with an overall customer satisfaction score of 86% but recognise we can do even better. We’re working hard with partners to tackle the key issue of congestion and expect to see improved punctuality of our buses. *Transport Focus Bus Passenger Survey
First Midland Bluebird is part of FirstGroup plc, the leading transport operator in the UK and North America. Our vision is to provide solutions for an increasingly congested world...keeping people moving and communities prospering.
Our services help to create strong, vibrant and sustainable local economies and our opportunity is to be the provider of choice for our customers and communities by demonstrating the importance of our values‌
Dedicated to safety
Committed to our customers
Accountable for performance
Supportive of each other
Midland Bluebird Ltd Carmuirs House, 300 Stirling Road, Larbert FK5 3NJ https://www.firstgroup.com/ south-east-and-central-scotland Customer Services phone number: 01324 602200 Customer Services opening times: 24/7 Traveline number: 0871 200 22 33 Calls cost 12p per minute plus your phone company’s access charge
Setting the highest standards