No Joint Ticketing for Grove and Wantage

Today, I put a motion to the full County Council calling for the joint ticketing system, which was introduced in Oxford at the beginning of this year, to be extended to our area. This was reported here.  I was hoping that, as this has been operational for some time in the city, there was a real opportunity to take this forward to other areas in the county where more than one bus operator is working.

Readers of my blog will know that I have been campaigning for this to happen for some time. Many residents have said to me how much easier it would be for them if they could travel on any of our bus companies and be able to use one return ticket for both journeys, rather than having to buy a separate ticket if another operator turns up.  We currently have both Stagecoach and Thames Travel who operate commercial services in our area, and both of these companies are signed up to the Quality Bus Partnership in Oxford, which allows the council to 'broker' the services which are provided and ensure that this can happen.

Indeed, I have experienced first-hand how well the service works in Oxford when I have used the buses within the city.  You can buy your return ticket and it clearly states on it that it can be used with Stagecoach, Oxford Bus Company and Thames Travel.

Unfortunately, for some reason which I do not understand, the Conservative ruling group at the County Council voted it down.  Everyone else supported it.  The Leader of the Council tried to make some vague excuses as to why it couldn't happen, but no explanation was forthcoming.  I did remind them that it was the same Conservative group who argued it couldn't happen before, and yet it all did happen in the city despite their previous negative reaction.

This would have helped improve public transport, help our carbon footprint, bring better value for money and above all give bus passengers a hassle-free experience.   What a pity our administration at the County Council has no desire try to improve public transport across Oxfordshire.