From the office of the Metro Mayor: Helen Godwin, the new Mayor of the West of England, today met with Rob Pymm, Commercial Director and Acting Managing Director of First Bus – Wales & West.
Following meetings with council leaders and senior staff during her first days in office, and the announcement of her first Deputy Mayor, the Mayor has prioritised meeting with First Bus in the West of England, the region’s largest bus operator.
Helen Godwin, the new Mayor of the West of England, said:
“As we start a new chapter for the West of England, my biggest priority remains getting our region moving. Longstanding transport challenges are at the top of my in-tray, so it was great to hit the ground running today with Rob.
“We talked about challenges around consistency and reliability of some services, and agreed to work together at pace to improve things.
“I’m determined to deliver real change on transport, working collaboratively with our local councils and bus operators. The West has recently secured major investment from national government for new electric buses, with First Bus committing further funding to deliver charging infrastructure at their depots – as I saw in recent months at Hengrove.
“Passenger numbers are growing, and we will soon be seizing the opportunity to use this investment – and more from the Mayoral Combined Authority – so that people see and feel connected, through public transport, to the best of life in our region.”
Rob Pymm, Commercial Director and Acting Managing Director of First Bus – Wales & West:
“It was great to meet with Helen today and learn more about her priorities for buses in the region.
“Buses play a vital social, economic and environmental role and it was good to share the success we’ve had, working in partnership with the Mayoral Combined Authority, to deliver strong passenger growth and make rapid progress to bring zero emissions buses to the region.
“We share Helen’s focus on continuing to improve services and welcome her emphasis on working collaboratively to achieve that, both through continued investment in services as well as efforts on bus priority and tackling congestion so that everyone can benefit from faster and more reliable buses.”