Issue - meetings

Purpose of the Report

To seek the transfer of bus shelters and the bus shelter contract, so as to provide a new future for bus shelter provision in Lincoln which allowed the service to develop as a key part of public transport infrastructure in the city

Decision

That the City Council be instructed to invite the County Council to take ownership of the bus shelter asset, along with the Adshell contract.

Alternative Options Considered and Rejected

For the City Council to retain the bus shelters with a new advertising contract, which was not considered to be the preferred option.

Reasons for the Decision

The bus shelters, which had always been a part of the transport infrastructure of the City, were left with the City Council when the County Council took back responsibility for the highway functions many years ago.

The City Council had two types of bus shelter: Those that were self-maintaining (self-funded by advertising), making them ‘free,’ and others that incurred a cost for their upkeep.

Advertising on bus shelters has become a more competitive market, and we were advised that the next contract for advertising on the shelters was likely to generate an income over and above the provision of the ‘free’ shelters. It was expected that the income would be enough to cover the annual maintenance costs of those that had traditionally incurred a cost to maintain them (non- advertising), with some potential for step by step improvements subject to the actual income achieved.

Before letting the next contract, as the bus shelters were expected to be self-financing, and thereby free of liability, it had been right to consider where the responsibility for the bus shelters should sit, not least in the context of the development of a modern transport strategy.

As Lincolnshire County Council, was the transport authority responsible for subsidising the bus routes it was considered a logical proposal to transfer ownership of our shelters and the Adshell Shelters (self-funded by advertising), to the responsibility of the County Council at nil cost.

The County Council had been approached in the context of the above, and with recognition to the increasing importance of public transport, to see if they would be interested in adopting responsibility for all bus shelters. They had acknowledged the points made, and made it known that they would be prepared to consider adopting them if this was in full and at nil-cost. This report considered the options and made a clear recommendation.

(Members commended officers on their amazing work.)