Go-Ahead

Our business strategy is therefore based around a continuing mission to deliver better, cheaper and greener services. We achieve this through:

Investing in the latest technology

We continue to invest in new buses and trains offering greater capacity and comfort. Some of our new buses offer Wi-Fi and many have real-time information screens. Southeastern has been operating a Preview service for its new domestic high-speed rail operation, giving passengers an opportunity to try out the new 140-mph trains before a full service is launched in December 2009.

Making our services user friendly

Some initiatives we have introduced to make our services convenient and easy to use include the introduction of:

Our operating companies are continually upgrading the information provided on their websites, with up-to-the-minute details on everything from service provision to local weather.

On our buses, on our trains and at our stations, we continue to invest in technology to provide
real-time information and service news.

Integrating our services

We encourage our operating companies to work together and with others to provide integrated services so that passengers can easily travel across the public transport system. We also invest in infrastructure to cope with growing passenger numbers and address issues of crowding and congestion. On the railways, we have invested in groundbreaking new technology that automatically assesses passenger numbers by weight. This system provides much improved travel data helping to target services to relieve crowding.

Working in partnership

We always consider the level of local and regional support for public transport when considering our investment decisions. We aim to work closely with stakeholders such as local councils to find solutions that can meet everyone’s needs.

Explaining our performance

Rail punctuality is measured on the basis of the Department for Transport’s Public Performance
Measure (PPM).This is the percentage of trains that arrive at their final destination within 5
minutes of their scheduled arrival time, which is the accepted industry definition of ‘on-time’. Targets are set annually and we aim to meet or exceed these year on year.

Deregulated bus

The punctuality of our deregulated bus operations is measured as a percentage of buses that arrive at their stop one minute early to five minutes late. Therefore the higher the percentage the better. This time frame is an industry standard definition of what constitutes being ‘on time’. We are committed to providing reliable services and our aim is to improve punctuality each year. The industry average is 74%. (Source: DfT Public Transport Statistics 2008.)

London bus

The reliability of our London bus operations is measured on the basis of Transport for London’s (TfL) excess waiting time. This is the time in minutes passengers have to wait for a bus above the average scheduled waiting time. Therefore, the lower the excess waiting time the better. We are committed to providing punctual services and our aim is to maintain our low excess waiting time performance. The industry average is 1.09 minutes. (Source: TfL. 1 April 09 – 26 June 09).

Aviation services

Aircraft movements relate to our aviation services division. The reduction in aircraft movements compared to the last two years is a reflection of this year’s global economic downturn, which has severely affected the whole airline industry.