Harrogate's public transport operators say they are ready to welcome passengers back but will people have confidence to return...

The message from public transport operators to Harrogate passengers this week is simple but  new in the context of the pandemic - ‘we are ready to start welcoming people back.’
We have plentiful available capacity for people to travel in comfort, with lots of room to feel safe on board. But we have a long way to go to build up capacity." - Harrogate Bus Companys Alex Hornby.We have plentiful available capacity for people to travel in comfort, with lots of room to feel safe on board. But we have a long way to go to build up capacity." - Harrogate Bus Companys Alex Hornby.
We have plentiful available capacity for people to travel in comfort, with lots of room to feel safe on board. But we have a long way to go to build up capacity." - Harrogate Bus Companys Alex Hornby.

After seeing the town reopen for business, the bosses of the bus and train companies are determined to get on board the return to near normality at a greater pace than at any time since lockdown was introduced.

The last week has seen an increase in seated capacity and the number of daily services, as well as a renewed push to rebuild passenger confidence after nearly four months when people were advised to shun public transport unless absolutely essential.

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Harrogate Bus Company’s chief executive Alex Hornby said things were going in the right direction as public transport geared up in its crucial role in supporting the economic recovery during the 'new normal.'

Mr Hornby said: “Customers are increasing steadily with particular growth at weekends.

“We are now running to normal daytime timetables to make it as easy as possible for people to venture out in confidence by bus.

“Bus passengers are proven to spend more on the high street than motorists and we remain as keen as ever to support the success and economic resurgence of our town.”

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Harrogate Bus Company is not the only company which is ready to welcome more people on board as it eases its capacity restrictions - which at one point saw only 12 passengers allowed on the single decker part of its fleet.

Connexions buses in Harrogate have now restarted selling tickets for its network of school buses serving St John Fisher and St Aidans schools, as well as King James School in Knaresborough.

LNER, whose flagship Azuma trains offer Harrogate passengers a direct return service to London, last week added extra train services to its temporary timetable, now running more than 75% of its usual weekday journeys.

And fellow rail operator Northern has announced it is trialling a new flexi-season ticket for journeys between Harrogate and Leeds as it increases its daily serviced from 60% of pre-Covid levels to 67%.

But reality has not yet caught up with aspiration.

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Fears that passengers are not “psychologically ready" to return to buses and trains

“We are seeing around 30% of our normal usage levels despite us running 95% of our normal timetable.”

The latest Government guidance may, in theory, enable operaters to, potentially, load buses to 50% seating capacity, but the figures say there is some distance to go if buses, and trains for that matter, are to stop looking so empty.

Harrogate Bus Company’s Alex Hornby said: “ We have plentiful available capacity for people to travel in comfort, with lots of room to feel safe on board. But we have a long way to go to build up capacity.

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“We are seeing around 30% of our normal usage levels despite us running 95% of our normal timetable.”

Craig Temple, managing director of Connexions Buses, said: “It is encouraging that the guidance on distancing now lets us load buses to 50% seating capacity, but, to be honest, that is fine for most services in Harrogate.”

The fear is that the Covid-19 crisis may have been joined by a new crisis to cope with - that of customer confidence.

Transport expert Richard George, who who chairs the public sector operator which runs what used to be the Northern rail franchise, told political leaders at a meeting of Transport for the North’s Rail North Committee this week he feared passengers were not “psychologically ready” to return to train travel in large numbers after months of being told to avoid public transport.

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Enhanced cleaning regimes and importance of reviving passenger numbers on public transport

“None of us now expect the numbers will return to pre-Covid levels."

Recent weeks have seen staff in bus and rail companies working around the clock to keep the network clean and reduce the potential for the virus to spread.

Enhanced cleaning routines are now normal in public transport; LNER even boasts of its onboard ventilation systems providing a continuing supply of fresh air, with the air recycled every six minutes.

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And, of course, wearing face masks has been mandatory for all bus and train passengers since the lockdown began.

Despite all the hard work, Northern’s managing director Nick Donovan estimates it will be December before its services return to anything deemed close to normality once again.

Companies may be ready to welcome people back in a safe and measured way but, as the era of running reduced services begins to end, the question is whether passengers will choose to return.

Connexions Buses’ Craig Temple said: “None of us now expect the numbers will return to pre-Covid levels.

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“The Government have, in effect, been turning our business away for four months now by telling them not to use public transport.

“It needs reversing - not only for our benefit, but for the benefits public transport brings to the high street in general.”

The revival of passenger numbers may be important to the economy but it is just as important when it comes to tackling climate change.

Alex Hornby added: “What we don’t want as we ease out of lockdown is a Harrogate that is jammed up with cars and congestion, alongside deteriorating air quality.

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"Our low and zero-emission buses can be part of a better environment and a better future for us all."

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