'Much needed' changes to West Midlands Ring & Ride services 'long time coming’

Members of the West Midlands Combined Authority’s (WMCA) Transport Delivery Overview and Scrutiny Committee were presented with a raft of changes to be implemented to the service.

A Ring and Ride Task & Finish Group was set up to look at identifying and tackling issues and ensuring it is more financially viable in the future.

And a report to the committee set out a number of measures aimed at providing a more simplified service model and improve fairness, efficiency and within a balanced budget.

Earlier this year, increases to Ring and Ride fares were agreed by WMCA Board with Walsall Council leader saying the cost of each trip amounting to £26 per head was ‘not acceptable’.

Among the latest measures put forward are changing current Ring and Ride boundaries and adopting a distance cap of four miles.

Another change would include deploying a mixed size fleet, specifically using a smaller eight-seater while also trialling other smaller vehicles.

Reducing the booking window from seven days to three days on a trial basis to see the impact on cancellation rates and passenger ‘no shows’ was also put forward.

They will also adopt a maximum of 14 trips per customer (seven return trips) as well as exploring a trial of grouped trips to test take-up.

Wolverhampton councillor and committee member Carol Hyatt backed the measures and said she was particularly pleased with the trial of grouped bookings which she said she had been suggesting for years.

She said: “This has been a long time coming and is very much needed. This report absolutely reflects residents needs and how we can best meet the needs of our most vulnerable residents.

“In my ward, there are learning disabled adults who cannot use the Ring and Ride service unless somebody books it for them.

“Having a tutor that can book it for them guarantees bums on seats for Ring and Ride, guarantees income and it guarantees better quality of life for those residents who need it.

“I am so pleased it’s there and so pleased to see a report which so well reflects the needs of our residents.”