Representation by Metrobus (a trading name of Brighton & Hove Bus and Coach Company Limited) (Metrobus (a trading name of Brighton & Hove Bus and Coach Company Limited))
- Date submitted
- 18 October 2023
- Submitted by
- Members of the public/businesses
Metrobus is the operator of local bus services to Gatwick Airport. Through a long term partnership with the airport and the supportive local authorities, bus use to and from Gatwick has grown significantly over the past two decades. This has been accelerated by the excellent bus priority infrastructure provided by the Fastway Bus Rapid Transit system which provides frequent and rapid 24 hour bus services from local areas to the airport. Surrey and West Sussex county councils are both in the process of further development of the system with new bus lanes. 20 zero emission hydrogen buses have been introduced on this network in 2023 with another 34 coming in 2024/25, by which time the vast majority of local buses at Gatwick will be zero emission buses operated using green hydrogen. The Northern Runway proposals have the opportunity to further improve this key form of sustainable transport and further improve the mode share of bus to the airport, particularly for airport workers. The ambitious new mode share targets are welcome but will only be possible by taking strong measures to travel sustainably. The provision of very cheap airport parking (usually provided for free to employees) makes it difficult to get people to give up their car. At present there is no bus priority on the airport campus around North Terminal and buses often get delayed in traffic, have to take a convoluted route, give way to cars and have bus stops a long walk from the terminal. The project could use the opportunity to improve these issues. The proposals as presented so far would worsen journey times for buses on most sections (through longer routes, stopping at new signalised junctions and lower speed limits) and not provide any new priority for buses over non sustainable modes. There could be the opportunity to review this and to provide a better location for buses to stop at North Terminal that would improve accessibility to the bus and reduce journey times compared to the current proposal. The proposal to pump prime frequency improvements to existing core bus routes is very welcome, although some tweaking of the detail is required. There could be an opportunity to include other inter-urban and local routes, while it is important that the longer distance coach routes consider the existing bus routes over those sections to ensure that local communities do not lose their local service due to abstraction. It would also be beneficial for airport workers in particular if more routes were enhanced to 24 hour operation and more buses served North Terminal. The bus stops at South Terminal are very well used and very well located. They have great access thanks to recent investment by Gatwick Airport. However, the bus stops themselves could be upgraded to include an enclosed waiting area to improve the experience and cater for additional users. There is extreme abuse of the bus stops by unauthorised vehicles that needs to be addressed. The Northern Runway is a great opportunity to further improve the strong bus links at Gatwick to deliver the bold targets but it is essential that the infrastructure is provided to enable this.