The Bus Service Improvement Plan (BSIP) will be delivered through an Enhanced Partnership. This formal agreement requires the council and local bus operators to work more closely together to plan and deliver improvements to bus services and infrastructure.
There are two parts to an enhanced partnership, the Enhanced Partnership Plan and the Enhanced Partnership Scheme.
The Enhanced Partnership Plan
This sets out a summarised version of the BSIP, providing the background for the proposed local bus service improvements.
It provides the high-level vision and objectives for bus services in the local area with the major sections of the plan setting out:
- the aims and objectives
- supporting policies
- a competition test that satisfies the Competition and Markets Authority that the Enhanced Partnership will not have adverse impacts on competition locally
- the extent of the enhanced partnership
- an overview of the bus network in Dorset
- desired outcomes and planned interventions; and the plans for consulting users, passenger groups, and local stakeholders
The Enhanced Partnership Scheme
This sets out the detail of how the plan vision and objectives will be achieved, including any commitments made by the council or responsibilities to be met by bus operators.
The scheme also details the governance structures and decision-making processes, and the bespoke variation mechanism which will be used to add further detail to the scheme once BSIP funding is secured.
Read the full Enhanced Partnership Plan and Scheme.
Date of effect
On 1 March 2022, a meeting of Dorset Council Cabinet reviewed and approved the making of the plan and scheme. The plan and scheme took effect on the 25th April 2022.
For more information please contact busbackbetter@dorsetcouncil.gov.uk