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Channon's D-reg revolution
Page 33
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• Britain's "quiet revolution" of bus deregulation has created better services for more than five million bus users according to Transport Secretary Paul Channon.
There are 10% more buses and fewer subsidised routes than there were 12 months ago when deregulation was intro duced, he told delegates at the Bus and Coach Council's annual conference in Edinburgh last week.
The policy, which has forced local authorities to open routes to competitive tendering, has helped both the customer and the industry, he claims. This has come about because operators have sought ways to operate services at a profit.
Local authorities now have to consider more carefully which services are socially necessary and should be put out to tender. This has saved ratepayers significant amounts, he says.
The Government's decision to privatise the National Bus Company as individual subsidiary companies, instead of as one unit, was "courageous".
"No one would have taken us seriously when we talked about bus competition if we left this semi-monopolistic corporation in one piece," Channon says.