The immediate agenda - Transport Policy and Planning in Great Britain - page 396

Delaying tactics could be pursued through legal challenges reinforced by threats to
withhold the use of their assets or to deregister services in advance of the contract
coming into force, thus leaving an area unserved. (A critical difference compared with
the franchising of rail services is that the bulk of existing bus services are not run
under contract and that the operator owns the vehicles and garaging facilities used to
provide these services.)
The possibility of such tactics has been heightened by the Conservative Party
declaring its opposition to the principle of Quality Contracts and by acknowledgement
from DfT that even the new procedures could require over two years to deliver such
a scheme (LTT 484). During the Bill's second reading the shadow transport secretary
Theresa Villiers said that Quality Contracts would:
prevent free competition between bus operators, undermine service quality for
passengers and jeopardise the partnerships between operators and local authorities
that have helped to improve service quality.
(reported in LTT 491)
She said that a Conservative Government would 'certainly look to remove Quality
Contracts altogether as an option outside London'.
23.7 Transport governance in city regions
Even if the Government's intentions behind the TIF Congestion fund and the
legislative changes concerning bus services and local road pricing schemes are realised,
in practice it remains doubtful whether the institutional framework in major urban
areas is fit for the complex land use/transport planning challenges which they face. Sir
Rod Eddington highlighted this concern in his report:
In the light of the economic importance of the UK's cities and regions and the
role that transport can play in supporting that economic success, I believe that
effective governance at sub-national level is a crucial issue for the future. Such
governance arrangements need to provide for consideration of all relevant modes
and all types of policy intervention.
(Eddington 2006a paras 1.154 and 1.157)
The DfT pursued this issue alongside work by other Government departments in
connection with the Sub-National Review (DTI 2007) and the Lyons Inquiry into
local government (DCLG 2007f).
The recommendations of Sir Michael Lyons concerning place-shaping and
the case for greater financial autonomy for local authorities were reflected in the
development of Local Area Agreements noted in section 19.8. He also wanted
local authorities to create close working alliances with central government, regional
and sub-regional partners. However on the basis of past experience he was wary of
structural change, preferring authorities to develop 'effective and flexible coalitions
that transcend boundaries' (LTT 465). The concept of sub-regional collaboration
and multi-area agreements had already been floated in the Local Government
White Paper (DCLG 2006c). He proposed a further set of 'tests' including political
leadership, accountability and public support which, if fulfilled, would result in
the sub-regional collective being provided with funds and powers devolved from