Manchester bus franchising

[Barney]

RE: Manchester bus franchising

(20/02/2023 19:41)KXW212 Wrote:  it's utterly bizarre that those two pieces of legislation exist together. You either have dereg or you don't. It certainly demonstrates that politicians shouldn't be anywhere near public transport (and many other things).

I'm not sure where you are going with this. Which two pieces of legislation? Are you suggesting that the change from deregulation to a franchising model in the whole of Manchester should happen instantaneously without any interim period for planning and preparation?

Also, the 1985 Transport Act specifically exempted two areas from bus deregulation, London and Northern Ireland, so even back then there were three systems operating in tandem: franchising in the TfL area, full state control in NI and deregulation in the rest of the UK.

As for your ludicrous assertion that politicians shouldn't be anywhere public transport, acts of parliament relating to public transport have been on the statute books since the days of Stephenson's Rocket and horse-drawn trams. Are you suggesting that there is no need for any public transport legislation in the UK? I have just Googled the ten best public transport systems in the world and surprise, surprise they are all funded by the state and highly regulated (by elected politicians).

Finally, I would love to know which "other things" you think politicians should not be involved in. Health care, education, social services, policing, the emergency services, housing, planning, the environment?