Cornwall DfT pre-franchising market research

The challenge

The Department for Transport has selected five local transport authority areas to participate in rural bus franchising pilot projects. ITP is assisting Cornwall Council - one of the areas selected – to explore how different franchising models might better deliver local bus networks in its rural areas. To inform the bus reform work, we have undertaken a separate market research project to better understand what people want and need from bus services in rural Cornwall.

The solution

We engaged in research to better understand people’s expectations of the county’s bus network. An online survey was completed by more than 2000 residents, including regular bus users and non-users. Data was analysed based on respondents’ protected characteristics.

An immersive research task required regular and less regular bus users and non-users to experience bus travel in Cornwall first hand. Forty four residents reflecting a range of protected characteristics, each made six bus journeys. They completed a travel diary per journey, covering all stages from planning to waiting at the bus stop, boarding the bus, travelling on and getting off the bus. Participants then attended one of six online focus groups to share their lived experiences of specific journeys.

This research generated one of the richest and most granular pictures to date of bus use in Cornwall, enabling the Council to consider bus reform armed with in-depth knowledge of what is important to its residents.

The result

The research demonstrated strong public support for bus in Cornwall and evidence that many people rely on them, but the current network does not always meet the needs of users or appeal to non-users. Service frequency, reliability, journey times, affordability, and the quality and accessibility of bus stops all present barriers to use. The research highlighted several ways in which the current bus delivery model disproportionately affects people with protected characteristics.

The findings showed that targeted improvements would deliver benefits for protected characteristic groups and improve access for all. Such improvements would also support the Council’s ambitions for a more inclusive, equitable and sustainable transport system and inform the bus reform model to deliver them.