§ Bob SpinkTo ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions if he will make it his policy to allow bus companies to co-ordinate their services to improve integration of bus services with rail services. [28130]
§ Mr. Spellar[holding answer 17 January 2002]: A number of operators already provide co-ordinated bus services that connect with rail services, and offer through tickets to cover the combined bus and rail journey. This is something that we wish to encourage and I understand from the Office of Fair Trading that there is no reason under competition legislation why a bus operator should not schedule its services so as to co-ordinate with train timings.
The Government are committed to delivering better integration between different modes of transport in order to ensure long-term improvements for the travelling public. We expect to see further progress towards integration between modes as a result of the increased investment provided under our 10-year plan for transport.