Mayor pledges bus improvements within two years

The West Midlands Mayor has said bus users will start to see improvements to the region's network two years from next spring.

Richard Parker's pledge to create a public franchise system similar to that in operation in Greater Manchester was a key element of his election campaign.

He plans to regain control from private operators over timetables, routes and fares, while contractors own and run the vehicles.

"The bus network is failing the people of the West Midlands," Mr Parker said. "It's currently a private service which receives an enormous amount of subsidy every year."

West Midlands Combined Authority (WMCA), which oversees Transport for West Midlands (TfWM), provided about £75m in subsidies to private contractors in the 18 months up to May.

The mayor said bringing buses back under public control would prioritise the needs of users.

"Two years from next spring we will start seeing real improvements on the network and have the first phases of a franchise system operating in the West Midlands," Mr Parker added.

Richard Parker, left, was pictured with other regional mayors outside Downing Street in July

In response to listener questions on BBC Radio WM, the mayor also said he had launched an "independent review" to determine the status of ongoing transport projects he had inherited.

The review would look at the planning and delivery of projects such as Aldridge Railway Station and the Camp Hill line in south Birmingham, which he confirmed was delayed further to 2025.

He said announcements previously made did not "reflect the reality on the ground" and said he would be "really clear on the hurdles [projects] need to reach for funding to be secured" once his review was completed.

When questioned about avoidable road deaths he described feeling "shocked and appalled" by the number of people losing their lives on the region's roads.

Mr Parker said a monthly meeting had been set up with police and council leaders to identify accident hotspots, with plans to focus on speed reduction and the introduction of average speed cameras.

'Birmingham has been punished'

In addition, the mayor talked about the commissioners appointed by the previous Conservative government to oversee Birmingham City Council cuts, claiming there was "politics involved".

"In my view, Birmingham has been punished and there are other ways of dealing with these issues," he said.

"No other local authority in the country facing cuts like this has been asked to turn themselves around in two years, other councils have been given four years."

He added it was "an opportune moment" for the new government to assess "a different way of addressing the issues Birmingham needs to address", relating to the cuts residents faced.