NEWPORT Transport has said it will be their customers who will decide whether buses return to the High Street and not market traders.

The firm's buses stopped using the High Street in the city last month and started running straight through to the new Newport Central Bus Station at Friars Walk, causing outrage among traders.

In a full statement sent to the Argus, the company said that while it has sympathy for any business finding itself in hard operating times, their "first and only concern must be to our customers who have loyally supported Newport Bus for many years".

It said: "To clarify the plan of action and to explain our stance is simple, our customers will decide the best way forward.

"If their decision is to serve High Street then we will makes plans to do that, providing it is safe to do so.

"It would be impossible for all services and journeys to operate via High Street, as some have suggested on social media. However if a high proportion of passengers on a service wish to alight in High Street before it continues to the Bus Station, and understand that this may increase journey times we will indeed facilitate this where sensible and safe."

The company confirmed it held a meeting with Alan Edwards, chairman of Newport BID and Tony Turner, of AD Turners butchers, on January 13.

They said they discussed the additional cost of running bus services through the High Street and the rationale regarding the reasons for the footfall increase over the past two years within the Indoor Market.

Newport Transport said they put the footfall increase down to construction workers at Friars Walk and due to the redevelopment their passengers had to walk past the Indoor Market or through this location to link with other bus services in their network.

They said during the two year redevelopment they dealt with hundreds of complaints regarding the relocation of services and lost in excess of 500,000 passenger journeys per year due to the inconvenience caused.

They said 'all parties agreed a plan of action' at the meeting which included to survey their customers.

The customer survey being carried out on buses started on January 18 and is ongoing. Newport Transport said this will include the opinions of customers of all services they operate in Newport and 'not those hand-picked by Market Traders.'

Newport Transport said today they received a letter from a Newport solicitor stating that they represent the market traders and are seeking a meeting with the bus company.

The company said the letter suggested they have not yet met with market trader representatives which it refutes.

 

Read the statement in full:

"Newport Transport has already clearly stated its position on the debate surrounding our bus services now serving Newport's central bus station and not High Street. For two years our bus services and customers were scattered in three areas around Newport due to the redevelopment of the bus station and retail areas.

During this two year period the company dealt with hundreds of complaints regarding the relocation of services and lost in excess of 500,000 passenger journeys per year, due to the inconvenience caused by this necessary arrangement. Since the bus services have returned to the central bus station our passenger journeys are beginning to recover.

The company was contacted by Alan Edwards on the 8th January 2016 offering to facilitate a meeting with the market traders, which the company agreed to. The company duly met Mr Alan Edwards (Newport BID Manager) and Mr Tony Turner (Turners Butchers) on January 13th 2016.

At this meeting Mr Turner and Mr Edwards put across their reasons and arguments for buses returning to High Street the company responded to those points. We discussed the additional cost of running bus services through the High Street and the rationale regarding the reasons for the footfall increase over the past two years within the Indoor Market.

During the two years of redevelopment Newport Bus, and other operators, served High Street and Queensway and also saw the opening of a 10 stand bus station in Market Square. During this time passengers were forced to terminate their journeys at these locations, meaning any commuters, shoppers and visitors had to walk past the Indoor Market or through this location to link with other bus services in our network .

We also discussed that during the period Friars Walk was being built all the construction workforce increased the High Street footfall. It was agreed that there were many contributing factors to a reduced footfall in High Street since December.

Departure stands at Queensway and High Street were a temporary measure to accommodate all bus services operating in Newport during the redevelopment of the central bus station.

We have also read recently, with dismay, that Newport Bus should simply meet with the traders to discuss the issues.

As we have demonstrated above this meeting has already taken place and all parties agreed a plan of action to move this issue forward. For some unknown reason this meeting is not acknowledged by a number of traders.

It is in the best interests of this company to survey our customers. They will be the people that advise us where they want to go, not the market traders who have not helped the situation by previously petitioning for the re-introduction of cars and parking in High Street.

Our customer survey, undertaken on bus, commenced on the 18th January and is currently ongoing and will include the opinions of customers of all services we operate in Newport and not those hand-picked by Market Traders.

Today we have received a letter dated 20 January from a Newport Solicitor stating that they represent the market traders and seeking a meeting with the bus company, suggesting that it is in the best interests of all that we should meet and again suggests that the company has not yet met with Market Trader representatives.

Again we must point out that the first request this company received for a meeting was from Alan Edwards and was held on the 13th January with a representative of the Market Traders present.

To clarify the plan of action and to explain our stance is simple, our customers will decide the best way forward. While we have sympathy for any business finding itself in hard operating times, our first and only concern must be to our customers who have loyally supported Newport Bus for many years.

If their decision is to serve High Street then we will makes plans to do that, providing it is safe to do so. It would be impossible for all services and journeys to operate via High Street, as some have suggested on social media.

However if a high proportion of passengers on a service wish to alight in High Street before it continues to the Bus Station, and understand that this may increase journey times we will indeed facilitate this where sensible and safe.

We have read many inaccuracies, misreported facts and scare-mongering rumours, on the comments section of the Argus and on social media . However, Newport Transport is a commercial arms length company, wholly owned by Newport City Council, but operated under the Transport Act of 1985 and the subsequent regulations of 1986, and managed by its board of directors. The company receives no direct funding from the local authority as its shareholder.

Newport Transport would like to take this opportunity to thank all its loyal customers for their patience during the bus station redevelopment and look forward to serving them throughout 2016."