Profits up 10% at Preston Bus owner Rotala
COACH and bus operator Rotala has recorded a mixed set of annual results with profit up and turnover down.
In the year ended November 30, the firm which owns Preston Bus in Lancashire, saw turnover dip to £54.8m from 2011’s £56.1m but profit before tax was up by 10.5% to £2.08m (2011: £1.88m).
The company said it has since strengthened its position in the West Midlands bus market – the second largest market in the UK after London – with the acquisition from First Group of its depots in Kidderminster and Redditch earlier this year.
Explaining the mixed results, the firm said: “The 2012 financial year was one of profound and continuing change for the bus industry. Against the background of an economy, at the very least, showing no signs of recovery, the industry has been obliged to confront and deal with the challenges put in its way by a number of changes in Government policy.
“These changes stem from the austerity measures which the Government has introduced since its election in 2010. In April 2012 the 20% reduction in the fuel tax rebate inherent in the Bus Services Operators’ Grant took effect. For Rotala this cut in rebate amounted to approximately £1m.
“This increase in the effective cost of fuel came on top of progressive reductions in concessionary fares reimbursement rates and the fall in local authority transport budgets. These measures made and make for a challenging operating environment.”
Rotala said that during the year it has received the remainder of its initial batch of 15 hybrid-power buses from the Optare Group.
At the end of the year Rotala entered into a new banking arrangement with its principal bankers RBS/NatWest. The new facilities, totalling £11m, increased its existing facilities.
