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copyright 2002 by the ARTS Consortium. ARTS is a project within the fifth framework programme of the European Union - competitive and sustainal growth.
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Description of the demonstration in several languages
de | en | es | fi | gr | hu | sw
Place: Galway, Ireland
Within the Irish demonstration project, BEALACH, in Conamara, improved co-ordination of local services, incorporating existing and new bus and taxi services, is supported by a local travel demand centre. This travel demand centre is linked to a regional centre which manages fire and emergency services as well as out-patients' transport. A further measure of the demonstration project is to organise a more co-ordinated and efficient service, incorporating travel by the general public in the area with special services like day-care for older people, for disabled people and those with mental health problems, provided by the Western Health Board. With this measure the demonstration project aims at the overcoming barriers to mixing passengers on the same service.
All services operated by Bealach have to be booked in advance. Where necessary the vehicle will divert to collect people from their home and return them to their home.
A number of routes include timed stops at interchanges where transferring to long-distance bus service is possible. All mini-buses are wheel chair accessible.
All information about this transport service is available in Irish and English.
The demonstration started in February 2003 and aims to improve the access to local shops and facilities, limit the isolation of older groups, and to provide mobility to persons with disabilities.
Travel Demand Centre:
The Travel Demand Centre would undertake the following activities bilingually (in both Irish and English):
· Take bookings from people requesting the bus to divert to pick them up.
· Take bookings for local demand responsive services.
· Provide a central information resource on all local transport services and operators.
Reservations should be made at the latest one day in advance by telephone, e-mail, fax or letter and can be made in Irish and English.
Network of flexibly routed and demand responsive services:
The network of routes and services is designed to provide links to local settlements and connections to major centres such as Galway City and Clifden.It therefore involves the following:
· Co-ordination through the TDC of private bus operators, voluntary transport and non-emergency health transport operators and taxis
· Interchange facilities between regional and local services (state, private and community operators)
Booking procedures and policies:
· In order to make a booking, users have to call the TDC between 1000 and 1300. Bookings can also be made by letter, fax or e-mail. Users may make a regular booking for the same trip at a frequency chosen by themselves. They are then obliged to inform the TDC when they do not wish to travel.
· Minimum advance time for reservations is the morning prior to the day of the trip to be made.
· Policies concerning denial of service for reasons of capacity and policies about no-shows or late appointments have not yet been determined and such events have not yet occurred.
Fares:
Users purchase the tickets in advance from the TDC and from local outlets, mostly post offices.
Simple flat fares are being charged. These are at ?1, ?2 and ?3 for single fares and ?4 and ?5 for return fares. Holders of Free Travel Passes issued by the national Department of Social & Family Affairs may travel free of charge. This Pass applies to people over 65 years of age and disabled people; approved companions are also able to travel free of charge.
Operators:
There is no on-road competition for local passenger transport services in the area. The only competition is on the interurban services where there is competition between the State operator and a private operator on three routes. However, the local part of each of their routes is different and direct competition is only on part of the main road into Galway City.
There are 19 private coach/minibus hire operators located in the area, most of whom are contracted to provide school transport services and some of whom are contracted to provide services for the Health Board. Five of these operators are providing services under contract to Bealach.
Seven voluntary groups/organisations provide local transport services for the health board as well as for their own members. Six of these are contracted to provide services for Bealach and the other will provide back up for the group in their area.
The tendering process involved the following procedures:
Direct mail shot to the voluntary groups and private operators in the service areas. Only those in each service area were invited to tender. The respondents were than rated firstly on whether they offered a vehicle accessible to wheelchair users and secondly on the price quoted. Negotiations then took place with the successful operator for each route and a contract was prepared and signed following agreement.
Other Stakeholders involved in the demonstration project:
* Cumas Teo (a local development agency responsible for social, economic and cultural development in the Irish speaking part of Conamara)has a dedicated member of staff working part time on the preparation,planning and management of the demonstration project. It is also making available a limited amount of financial support for the services operated in the demonstration project.
* FORUM (a community development project responsible for actions in NW Conamara and also involved in day care services for older people and disabled people)- its Deputy Director is directly involved in the preparation, planning and management of the demonstration project.
* Cashel Community Council (an elected local council, which is responsible for community development in an area, which is at the interface between the Irish speaking and English speaking areas of Conamara)has made available office space for the location of Bealach?s Travel Dispatch Centre. It is also involved in the preparation, planning and management of the demonstration project.
* Local post offices and shops provide outlets for the tickets, which users of the services must purchase in advance, as well as making available timetable leaflets and displaying posters advertising the services in their area.
The implementation of a combined passenger and mail service is also being planned. However, there are cultural barriers and issues of insurance, which are likely to prevent or hamper this integrated approach from being implemented.
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