Bus contracts worth £1.6m awarded to Sandwell operator

Sandwell-based bus and coach operator, Rotala has secured three new contracts from the body responsible for public transport in the West Midlands, which could be potentially worth more than £1.6m to the company.

The contracts, which will start in April, have been awarded as part of Transport for the West Midlands’ latest public tenders for its supported bus services.

Rotala said the contracts would attract a subsidy from TfWM of approximately £866,000 a year. The passenger revenue associated with these contracts (based on usage statistics provided by TfWM at the time of the tender) is estimated to be a further £740,000 per annum.

Full year total revenue derived from these contracts will be approximately £1,606,000.
 
The contracts are for periods of between one and five years, with the vast majority of them concentrated in the three to five-year range. The contracts will require the equivalent of a further 12 buses to be put on the road.

However, Rotala said the mix of vehicles in the group’s current fleet was sufficient to meet the new requirements and no new vehicles would be acquired to service this additional business.

The services will also be operated from the company’s existing Tividale and Redditch depots, which it said would increase operational efficiency.
 
In anticipation of the new services, the company has secured from the West Midlands Traffic Commissioner authorisation to increase its operating fleet in the West Midlands area from 228 to 275 vehicles.

“This increase places the company in a position where it can take immediate advantage of any further growth opportunities arising from the Buses Bill which is expected to receive the Royal Assent this summer,” said Rotala.