Questions · Elaine Smith

8 Mar 2011 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what surveys have been carried out on passenger satisfaction on buses.

Answer · Keith Brown: The Scottish Government has not carried out any specific surveys about passenger satisfaction on buses in recent years. However, the annual Scottish Household Survey and includes questions on passenger satisfaction.

8 Mar 2011 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what the satisfaction levels are of bus passengers in the Coatbridge and Chryston constituency.

Answer · Keith Brown: The Scottish Government does not hold this data. Although the Scottish Household Survey has a large sample that covers the whole of Scotland, it has some geographical limitations because of the sample sizes in small local authorities and because it is designe…

8 Mar 2011 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what surveys have been carried out on passenger satisfaction on buses in the Coatbridge and Chryston constituency.

Answer · Keith Brown: The Scottish Government has not carried out any specific survey. However, the annual Scottish Household Survey (SHS) includes questions on passenger satisfaction. Although the SHS has a large sample that covers the whole of Scotland, the results are not repre…

8 Mar 2011 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what the satisfaction levels are of bus passengers in the Strathclyde area.

Answer · Keith Brown: Scotland level figures are available from the Scottish Household Survey (SHS). Figures are published online as part of the SHS Transport: Local Area Analysis web tables. Table 16 includes a breakdown by local authority and regional transport partnership, as w…

8 Mar 2011 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what the satisfaction levels are of bus passengers in the Moodiesburn area.

Answer · Keith Brown: The Scottish Government does not hold this data. Although the Scottish Household Survey has a large sample that covers the whole of Scotland, it has some geographical limitations because of the sample sizes in small local authorities and because it is designe…

8 Mar 2011 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what surveys have been carried out on passenger satisfaction on buses in the Moodiesburn area.

Answer · Keith Brown: The Scottish Government has not carried out any specific survey, however, the Scottish Household Survey (SHS) is asked of a sample of households across Scotland each year and includes questions on passenger satisfaction. Although the SHS has a large sample th…

8 Mar 2011 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what guidance it gives to bus companies regarding routes.

Answer · Keith Brown: The provision of local bus services is generally a matter for individual bus operators, who use their own commercial judgement on service routes and frequencies. The Scottish Government does not give any guidance to bus operators regarding routes.

8 Mar 2011 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what action it takes to ensure the areas that are not well served by rail links have sufficient bus services.

Answer · Keith Brown: The majority of bus services in Scotland are operated on a commercial basis by private bus companies. Provided that an operator registers a service with the Office of the Traffic Commissioner, they can operate any route to any frequency they wish. Local autho…

8 Mar 2011 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what provisions there are to ensure adequate bus coverage at peak times.

Answer · Keith Brown: The majority of bus services in Scotland are operated on a commercial basis by private bus companies. Provided that an operator registers a service with the Office of the Traffic Commissioner, they can operate any route to any frequency they wish. Local autho…

8 Mar 2011 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how many buses travelled between Moodiesburn and Glasgow on 21 February 2011

Answer · Keith Brown: The Scottish Government does not hold information on bus service operations centrally including those between Moodiesburn and Glasgow. We expect bus services to run to their registered timetables. Specific information about services should be referred to the …

8 Mar 2011 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how many buses travelled between Moodiesburn and Glasgow on 31 January 2011.

Answer · Keith Brown: The Scottish Government does not hold information on bus service operations centrally including those between Moodiesburn and Glasgow. We expect bus services to run to their registered timetables. Specific information about services should be referred to the …

8 Mar 2011 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how many bus routes served the Moodiesburn area on 21 February 2011.

Answer · Keith Brown: The Scottish Government does not hold information on bus service registrations. All local bus services must be registered with the Traffic Commissioner. The Traffic Commissioner can be contacted at Office of the Traffic Commissioner, The Stamp Office, 10 Wate…

8 Mar 2011 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how many bus routes served the Moodiesburn area on 31 January 2011.

Answer · Keith Brown: The Scottish Government does not hold information on bus service registrations. All local bus services must be registered with the Traffic Commissioner. The Traffic Commissioner can be contacted at Office of the Traffic Commissioner, The Stamp Office, 10 Wate…

8 Mar 2011 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how many bus routes served the Moodiesburn area on 31 January 2010.

Answer · Keith Brown: The Scottish Government does not hold information on bus service registrations. All local bus services must be registered with the Traffic Commissioner. The Traffic Commissioner can be contacted at Office of the Traffic Commissioner, The Stamp Office, 10 Wate…

8 Mar 2011 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how many bus passengers there have been in each year since 1999.

Answer · Keith Brown: This data is collected by the Department for Transport and is published annually in Scottish Transport Statistics. The figures can be found at: <a href="http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2010/12/17120002/41">http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publicat…

8 Mar 2011 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how many bus passengers there have been in the Coatbridge and Chryston constituency in each year since 1999.

Answer · Keith Brown: This information is not collected or held by Scottish Government.

8 Mar 2011 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how many bus passengers there have been in Moodiesburn in each year since 1999.

Answer · Keith Brown: This information is not collected or held by Scottish Government.

8 Mar 2011 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it considers that bus services in the Moodiesburn area would have been better organised if the proposed members’ Bill on the regulation of bus services, which was lodged on 1 December 2009, had been passed.

Answer · Keith Brown: The Scottish Government is not in a position to speculate on how the proposed members'' Bill may have affected bus services in Moodiesburn.

8 Mar 2011 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what its position is on the need for the regulation of bus services

Answer · Keith Brown: We believe that the current regulatory regime covering the provision of local bus services is adequate for its intended purpose and as such we have no plans at present to make changes to it.

8 Mar 2011 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what penalties there are for bus companies that do not meet the terms of their contractual agreements.

Answer · Keith Brown: The Scottish Government does not have contractual agreements with bus companies for the provision of services. We do not hold information on the penalty clauses in contracts between bus companies and third parties, which would be a matter for them.

8 Mar 2011 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what penalties there are for bus companies that fail to prevent overcrowding.

Answer · Keith Brown: Anyone who contravenes, or fails to comply with, the provisions of the Public Service Vehicles (Carrying Capacity) Regulations 1984 they shall be liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding level 2 of the standard scale.

8 Mar 2011 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what penalties there are for bus companies that fail to satisfy local demand.

Answer · Keith Brown: The provision of local bus services is generally a matter for individual bus operators, who use their own commercial judgement on service routes and frequencies including the number and size of vehicles used. Local authorities can provide subsidy for services…

8 Mar 2011 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what provisions there are to ensure that the number of buses in an area meets local demand.

Answer · Keith Brown: The provision of local bus services is generally a matter for individual bus operators, who use their own commercial judgement on service routes and frequencies including the number and size of vehicles used. Local authorities can provide subsidy for services…

8 Mar 2011 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what provisions there are to ensure that the number of buses in an area meets local demand.

Answer · Keith Brown: The number of passengers that can be carried in public service vehicles (buses) is set out in the Public Service Vehicles (Carrying Capacity) Regulations 1984, governed by the design of the vehicle, the space in the saloon, the number of seats, gangway space …

8 Mar 2011 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what regulations there are to prevent overcrowding on buses.

Answer · Keith Brown: It is the responsibility of drivers to ensure that their vehicles do not exceed their carrying capacity. The Public Service Vehicles (Carrying Capacity) Regulations 1984 state that nobody should drive, or permit to be driven, a vehicle if the number of seated…

8 Mar 2011 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what consultation was carried out with bus users in Moodiesburn prior to the opening of the Moodiesburn bypass.

Answer · Keith Brown: The provision of local bus services is generally a matter for individual bus operators, who use their own commercial judgement on service routes and frequencies. The Scottish Government did not carry out any consultation with bus users in Moodiesburn prior to…

8 Mar 2011 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what consultation bus companies are required to undertake before altering a route.

Answer · Keith Brown: Bus companies are not required to undertake any consultation before altering a route. However, they are required to notify relevant local authorities of service changes 14 days prior to submitting their application to the Traffic Commissioner. Bus companies a…

8 Mar 2011 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what consultation bus companies are required to undertake before removing a route

Answer · Keith Brown: Bus companies are not required to undertake any consultation before withdrawing a route. However, they are required to notify relevant local authorities of service changes 14 days prior to submitting their application to the Traffic Commissioner. Bus companie…

3 Mar 2011 · General Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what consideration was given to the impact on people in Moodiesburn and the surrounding communities of the opening of the new Moodiesburn bypass.

Answer · Keith Brown: We considered that the transfer of 60% to 70% of the traffic from the existing A80 onto the new Moodiesburn Bypass would deliver significant environmental and safety benefits for the people of Moodiesburn and surrounding communities.

14 Jan 2011 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it is aware of a street rugby programme operating in the Coatbridge and Chryston constituency.

Answer · Kenny MacAskill: The Scottish Government is aware of the wide range of CashBack for Communities rugby programmes delivered by the Scottish Rugby Union, including Street Rugby, in the Coatbridge and Chryston constituency.