A BUS company that serves Redditch has been given a formal warning over its failure to be punctual.
A report published on Monday (February 6) detailed that Diamond Bus Ltd, owned by Rotala, was held to account at a public inquiry in November and frequent breakdowns, poor punctuality and questionable customer service were among the list of complaints directed at the West Midlands company.
In the report, Traffic Commissioner Nick Denton said: “I am clear that on too many occasions the company’s service has fallen far short of the required standards.
“I was appalled to read of incidents where a bus ran out of fuel in service, a bus rolled backwards after a driver had left his cab, drivers drove past bus stops when their vehicles were clearly not fully loaded, and a driver shut the doors on a schoolgirl, leaving her at the stop.
“Bus breakdowns were too frequent (one unfortunate passenger suffered two breakdowns on one journey) and communications with customers were at times abysmal.
“I therefore consider it appropriate to issue the company with a formal warning about its punctuality and service levels during the period under review. ”
It was not all bad news for the bus company, who were partially granted their request to increase of vehicles in their fleet from 228 to 323 – an application that was granted but given an immediate order reducing it by half to 275 until Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency’s (DVSA) Bus Operator Accounts Manager (BOAM) review sees sustained improvements in timekeeping.
On the decision to grant the request, Mr Denton said: “I accept that the company has made improvements to punctuality and customer service since the late 2015 early 2016 period to which the BOAM reports refer, the precise extent of those improvements and the current levels of punctuality have yet to be quantified.
“I have therefore decided to allow the company half of its requested increase now but to make the other half dependent on sustained improvements in punctuality.”
Diamond avoided any hefty fines, a suspension or losing its licence altogether, and the DVSA will carry out a further timetable monitoring exercise within the next six months. If the results show show further progression towards the 95 per cent compliance level, Diamond may be granted the extra vehicles they want.
Transport managers Chris Blyth and Robert Baker had been called to discuss their good repute and there was no negative judgement found against the pair.
A spokesperson for Diamond said: “In making his judgement we are pleased that the Traffic Commissioner accepted that some of the issues regarding reliability were outside of the control of Diamond Bus.
“Furthermore, it is gratifying that the Traffic Commissioner recognised the work we have undertaken during the last year in improving our punctuality performance. This work will continue with the target of meeting the 95 per cent punctuality standard. In particular, we are working with stakeholders to adjust timetables, where appropriate, to combat the effects of ever worsening traffic congestion across the region.
“We have also committed to invest £600,000 in new ticket machines for Diamond Bus, with installation commencing in April. These machines are the most modern ticket machines of their type and incorporate the latest technology allowing Real Time Information, the ability to manage hold ups and delays, the ability to align bus capacity more closely to passenger demand, and contactless payment.
“Finally, we are very pleased that the Traffic Commissioner also agreed to an increase in the total number of our bus operating licences to 275. This increase will enable Diamond Bus to continue to expand its bus services to meet increased customer demand. “
