COMMUNITYCOMMUNITY TRANSPORTTRANSPORT in Pembrokeshire - 2003 Phil Brookes Community Transport Development Worker Contents Forward 1 1. Introduction 3 2. A Profile of Pembrokeshire 4 General 4 Transport 4 3. The Community Transport Project 7 4. Identification of Needs in Pembrokeshire 9 Research with geographical communities 9 Research with communities of interest 10 CT workers research 11 SWWITCH 13 5. Existing Services 15 Pembrokeshire Country Cars 15 Pembrokeshire Voluntary Transport 15 Red Cross Transport and Escort Service 16 School minibuses 16 Social Services Volunteer Drivers 16 Wheelchair Accessible Taxis and Minibuses 16 Community Education Minibuses 17 Pembrokeshire County Council Adapted Vehicles 17 Narberth Dial-a-Ride 20 Hospital Cars 20 Cars for Carers 20 Preseli Rural Transport Association 21 6. Pembrokeshire County Council 22 The role of the Council in Community Transport 22 and Strategic Planning Concessionary Travel Pass Scheme 24 7. Funding Opportunities 25 Community Fund 25 Objective 1 26 Local Transport Services Grant 27 Trust Funds 28 Match funding and In-Kind Contributions 30 8. Prioritising Needs 31 9. Role of the Forum 32 10. The work of other groups in the county 33 Greenways 33 North Pembrokeshire Transport Forum 34 Pembrokeshire Rail Travellers Association 35 Pembrokeshire Access Group 35 11. Proposed developments 35 12. Conclusions 36 13. Recommendations 38 Appendices 39 Forward The importance of community transport I am delighted to have been asked to contribute to ‘Community Transport in Pembrokeshire - 2003’. Community transport has always played an important part in meeting the transport needs of many people who find it difficult to access conventional public transport, whether because of a lack of services, or because those services that are running may be less than ideal for passengers with mobility problems. This is perhaps especially true for people living in isolated Valleys communities, or in the rural areas of Wales, such as Pembrokeshire. As Welsh Assembly Government Minister responsible for transport I appreciate the vital contribution that community transport plays in helping people to access essential health care, and to link up with conventional bus and train services, as well as the equally valuable visits to friends and relatives, to social events, and simply to get out and about. Recognising this vital contribution I have allocated more than £7.5m under the Local Transport Services Grant (LTSG) scheme to local authorities to help boost the number and range of community transport projects, as well as to subsidise local buses. Pembrokeshire’s allocation is almost £400,000. To help the community transport sector to further develop its professionalism and expand its expertise, I am providing to the Community Transport Association (CTA) in Wales more than £300,000 over three years to boost the advice and support services it provides throughout Wales. Grants from the National Assembly to community transport projects over the last 5 years have already helped the work of several organisations operating in Pembrokeshire. They include South Pembrokeshire Partnership for Action for Rural Communities, and the Pembrokeshire Association of Voluntary Services. The voluntary sector makes a tremendous contribution to our society, and I am proud to pay tribute to the work of the many volunteers who give their time freely within the community transport sector. Their dedication and professionalism is a lesson to us all. To give extra help I was pleased recently to announce the extension of Bus Service Operators Grant, which gives a fuel duty rebate and thereby reducing operating costs to more community transport services in Wales. I very much hope that this extra funding will enable community transport operators to increase and develop the range of services they already provide so that even more people who depend on, and value, their work will benefit in the future. 1 Working in partnership with the sector and local authorities great progress has been achieved in recent years, but I am determined to ensure that this momentum is not lost. The Welsh Transport Forum - which I chair and which benefits from the membership of Wynford Lloyd-Davies of the CTA - has undertaken a review of community transport in Wales. A final report and action plan has been endorsed by the Forum and by the Assembly’s Environment, Planning and Transport Committee. We will be implementing the report’s recommendations in partnership with local authorities and the community transport, health, education, voluntary and social services sectors, and a seminar to help disseminate and promote its findings is scheduled for late October. From 1 April this year the Welsh Assembly Government has fulfilled its commitment to guarantee free travel on local bus services by pensioners and disabled people. The scheme is proving immensely successful, and has greatly improved accessibility for bus passengers. We would like to extend this to community transport but there are many difficult issues that would need to be overcome before that could happen. To help with this I have established a Steering Group including the CTA and the Welsh Local Government Association to investigate the issues involved in more detail, and to make recommendations to me. Community transport has traditionally made a major contribution to enhancing the mobility of very many people throughout Wales. That contribution has grown significantly in recent years, and I believe there is considerable scope and opportunity for further growth. I look forward to continuing to work closely with the voluntary and community transport sectors to achieve our shared objectives, and congratulate the Pembrokeshire Association of Voluntary Services on producing this helpful and informative report. SUE ESSEX AM Minister for Environment Welsh Assembly Government 2 1. Introduction Welcome to this, the first report into Community Transport in Pembrokeshire, the aim of which is to provide a focus for exploring the current and potential role of community transport in meeting a range of transport needs. The report has been produced as part of the work of the Community Transport Project, a multi agency partnership. Starting by looking at transport in the context of an overall profile of Pembrokeshire, the report then focuses on the range of research which has been carried out with; those geographical communities that are affected by peripherality and the lack of services in rural areas, and those communities of interest that have specific access issues due to physical and other sensory impairments. It gives a description of current provision in the county, before moving on to focus on the role of Pembrokeshire County Council and the potential for attracting new resources to build on what currently exists. The role of a Community Transport Forum is discussed as well as an exploration of issues such as the prioritisation of resources, proposed developments and the contribution made by other groups in the county to the overall transport agenda. The report closes with some conclusions and recommendations. However, one of its key purposes is to inform the process of debate. We would therefore urge you to take advantage of the opportunity to express your views in writing and/or by attending meetings of the Community Transport Forum. Your views have already helped to strengthen the report and make it a useful starting point to guide future developments in Community Transport in the County. 3 2. A Profile of Pembrokeshire General z Pembrokeshire forms the south-western peninsula of Wales. z The county covers approximately 1,600 square kilometers. z The county is predominantly rural with a population density about half the Welsh average. z The tourist industry has a significant effect on population at certain times of the year. z Levels of unemployment are consistently above the Welsh average. z Levels of health are better in Pembrokeshire overall than across Wales. z Levels of crime are low compared with much of the UK. z There are currently 8,000 Blue Badge holders in the county. (See Appendix I) Transport Pembrokeshire’s communications to the east with Wales and England have improved dramatically over the past 10 years. The A40 from Fishguard, through Haverfordwest, links up with the M4 motorway just east of Carmarthen, and the Whitland by-pass has helped ease traffic flow in and out of the county even further. The Trunk Road system contains the strategic routes into Pembrokeshire. About 30% of the total vehicle distance travelled is on Trunk Roads despite the fact that they make up only 5% of the County’s highway length. The level of car ownership in Pembrokeshire, as outlined in the 1991 census, was 78.5%, which was 8.5% above the national average. National Road Traffic Forecasts show that car ownership is likely to increase by up to 2% a year. Despite this 25% of the county’s resident population do not have access to private transport and are therefore often dependent on public transport in one form or another. 43% of the county’s rural population do not have access to a daily bus service. Demand for bus services in rural areas is in decline. Rising car use has resulted in a circle of declining bus service use and financial viability, rising fares and reducing service levels. These sparsely populated areas are unable to 4 support conventional bus services on a commercial basis. Particular problems exist for young people, people with disabilities, people of pensionable age, carers and the unemployed. If no provision is available to them they become excluded to a greater or lesser extent from economic and social activity. Rail links into Pembrokeshire are similarly inadequate, both in terms of the rail infrastructure itself and the standard of service. The majority of passenger train services running through the county are unprofitable. In the current debate over an all-Wales rail franchise the core service requirement must be extended beyond Swansea to both ferry ports, and the frequency, reliability and quality of service must be improved.