Keeping people moving & communities prospering 2017/18 a focus on Aberdeen
Introduction from
the MD
Welcome to the latest edition of our annual report which focuses on what we’re doing to keep people moving and communities prospering in Aberdeen. Our network in Aberdeen has faced some challenges, including a period of industrial action while revised terms and conditions with our driving colleagues were negotiated to secure the future of the business. We’ve also invested heavily in technology with the roll out of our mobile ticketing app, as well as new ticket machines that offer contactless payments to our customers, uptake of which has been particularly good across Aberdeen. We also have live streaming of real-time data to the First Bus app to help passengers keep up to date with the latest information about their journey. We’re continuing working with our industry partners as we encourage commuters to ditch the car and take the bus. For instance, a double decker bus has the potential to remove up to 75 cars from the road and therefore has a key part to play in delivering greener journeys across Aberdeen. I hope that you enjoy reading our report. If you have any comments or questions, don’t hesitate to get in touch. Andrew Jarvis Managing Director
Aberdeen 2017/18
Improving our customer offer Technology
63%
of customers using cashless travel
Technology is continually playing a greater part in making the customer travel experience easier than ever before. 63% of our customers are already using contactless methods such as debit and credit card, ApplePay/GooglePay and smart ticketing – we’re continuing to promote the rapid growth of our M-tickets app, with a view to having 80% of all journeys being made on a cashless basis by 2022. We’re also the first national bus operator to have successfully rolled out a contactless payment system across all of our services in the UK. Our improved First Bus travel app additionally gives our customers access to real time information across our network.
Satisfaction
87%
overall customer satisfaction We achieved a customer satisfaction score of 87% in the latest Transport Focus Bus Passenger survey. We’re determined to make sure that every journey with First delivers, and we’ve rolled out the ‘Tell FirstBus’ feedback web form so that customers can tell us about their journeys with us in real time.
Supporting service delivery for our customers
Our buses
176 vehicles A double decker bus can take up to 75 cars off the road and our network therefore has an integral part to play in encouraging commuters to ditch the car and take the bus.
All our vehicles are fitted with GreenRoad telematics helping reduce emissions and provide customers with a smoother journey. We’re also trialling zero emission vehicles around Aberdeen and currently operate 2 Hydrogen buses in partnership with Aberdeen City Council.
Staff & training
448 staff We continually invest in our staff through ongoing training and development. The successful roll-out of our ‘Journey Makers’ programme gives our drivers and customer facing staff new skillsets to use as part of our drive to continually improve passenger satisfaction. Also, we offer a variety of apprenticeships delivered to nationally recognised standards, with each apprentice supported and developed with the essential skills and knowledge required to gain a qualification and, in turn, build a rewarding career in the transport industry. Our First Bus Apprenticeship programme was recognised at the 2018 National Transport Awards by winning the ‘Apprentice Champion of the Year’ category. Also, our driving colleague Cameron Dyche won the Frontline Employee of the Year category at 2018’s Scottish and National Transport Awards ceremonies.
Aberdeen 2017/18
Focus on performance Safety
Dedicated to Safety
All of our operating companies across Scotland actively promote our ‘Be Safe’ programme, which encourages every employee to have a personal stake in the safety of ourselves, our colleagues and our customers. We continue to introduce robust safety plans across all depots and target zero injuries and zero fault collisions. We have also introduced our PAWS (Pull Away When Safe) campaign to raise staff awareness of customers who may have mobility difficulties.
Reliability
Over 5.6m
miles operated in the past year
We always aim to operate every journey in our network to schedule. Alongside the recent roll-out of real-time tracking through new ticket machines and by working closely with our transport partners, we’re continuing to improve our service reliability.
Strengthening our partnerships
Community
£1.5m
raised across the UK
First Aberdeen, along with our sister operating companies across the UK, raised over £1.5m in funds for Prostate Cancer UK to help in the fight against a disease that kills one man every 45 minutes in the UK. Our new charity of choice was voted for by
Journeys
Over 16m
FirstGroup employees earlier this year. Action for Children are a UK children’s charity dedicated to helping vulnerable children, young people and their families across the length and breadth of the UK.
passenger journeys per year
More people commute to work by bus than all other forms of public transport combined, and the bus has the largest market share (one third) of retail/expenditure trips to city centres.* The First Aberdeen network consists of more than 20 routes that together serve our customers making over 16 million passenger journeys each year. Our network of 5 weekend night bus routes play a key role in terms of supporting the city’s night-time economy by offering customers a real alternative to the car and other more expensive modes of transport. The bus plays a crucial role in supporting the local economy and our local communities. We’re absolutely committed to driving customer growth through attractive services by working together with all our stakeholders. *Greener Journeys
Aberdeen 2017/18
Aberdeen
Contact us First Aberdeen Ltd 395 King Street, Aberdeen, AB24 5RP Twitter: @FirstAberdeen Facebook: First Aberdeen Customer Services phone number: 0345 646 0707 Customer Services opening times: 0700-1900 Mon-Fri 0900-1700 Weekends and bank holidays Or visit firstgroup.com/Aberdeen and select ‘Help and Contact’ Traveline Scotland: 0871 200 2233
www.firstgroup.com
Our numbers in summary
Over 16 million
passenger journeys per year
5.6 million miles
operated per year across our region
448 employees A total of 176 buses 63% of customers using cashless travel
First Aberdeen Ltd is part of FirstGroup Plc. Our vision is to provide solutions for an increasingly congested world... keeping people moving and communities prospering.