Day 1: 11 November Programme

Please note the programme is currently under development

11 November Programme

12:30

Registration

Meet at the Albert Hall Nottingham for bag drop-off

13:00

Bus and Infrastructure tours

Delegates choose from 1 of 4
(Selection made during registration, subject to availability)

Tour option 1

Electric Bus Depot Visit – Nottingham City Transport

From horse drawn trams to full bus electrification and following the deployment of their 62 bus single deck fleet .

This visit to multi-award winning bus operator Nottingham City Transport, will demonstrate how the challenge of electrifying 1920s tram depots, replete with original tracks and listed stables was completed and reveal plans for the next phase of electrification, for the Double Decker fleet at their Parliament St Garage.

Max capacity 50

Electric Bus - Nottingham City Transport

Registration for this tour will open shortly

Tour option 2

Walking tour of Nottingham City Centre

See how urban design, combined with high quality bus infrastructure and priority is supporting the continued re-generation of Nottingham City Centre by improving the built environment.

The tour will start adjacent to the Albert Hall, with the Maid Marian Way junction improvement scheme and be followed by a saunter through the Broad Marsh area taking in the award wining Green Heart park, Broadmarsh Bus Station and integrated Bus Priority, Tram, Rail and cycling infrastructure.

Max capacity 50

Maid Marian Way improvements - Transport Nottingham Exploring the Green Heart - Transport Nottingham

Registration for this tour will open shortly

Tour option 3

Beeston Interchange by Bus and Tram

Delegates will catch the 36, from outside Nottingham Cathedral adjacent to the Albert Hall, with their complimentary multi -modal, multi-operator Robin Hood Card and experience the bus priority along the key A52 Derby Road – Brian Clough corridor) to the west of the city.

There will then be a seamless interchange with the tram at Beeston interchange (the first direct bus and tram interchange in the UK) and then returning to the city centre.

Max capacity 50

Beeston bus and tram interchange | Nottinghamshire County Council

Registration for this tour will open shortly

Tour option 4

Visit to the new Waterside Active Travel Bridge by Electric Bus

This tour will blend a visit to sustainable housing development Trent Basin via electric bus along the Daleside Road bus corridor, and a trip to see the first new crossing over the River Trent in 70 years. The bridge has been designed to support sustainable housing development and growth into the future and the continued regeneration of the Trent Sports District home to the world’s oldest professional football club Notts County FC, Nottingham Forest and cricket test match venue Trent Bridge. The tour will demonstrate the linkages between creating liveable, sustainable neighbourhoods and prioritising public transport and active travel in constrained urban environments.

Max capacity 50

Celebration as Waterside Bridge opens to the public - Transport Nottingham

Registration for this tour will open shortly

16:00

The Great Hall

Improving buses in the East Midlands

Welcome and keynote

Claire Ward, Mayor, East Midlands Mayoral Combined County Authority (EMCCA)

Richard Wellings, Principal Public Transport Officer – Bus Policy, Partnership and Major Projects, East Midlands Combined County Authority

Local enhanced partnership plan partnership
Rural accessibility – pilot in the Hope Valley

Local bus operator panel

With panellists from Stagecoach Midlands, Trent Barton and Notting City Transport

Followed by audience Q+A

17:30

The Osbourne Suite

Networking and comfort break

17:45

The Osbourne Suite

Networking drinks served

A selection of soft and alcoholic drinks served in the exhibition area.

18:30

Networking reception close

Delegates depart

Day 2: 12 November Programme

Please note the programme is currently under development

12 November Programme

08.45

Registration

Tea & coffee served in the Osbourne Suite exhibition area

09.45

The Great Hall

Opening plenary: Further, faster, better?

Leon Daniels, Chair of the Bus Centre of Excellence (BCoE) Advisory Board

Keynote from Department for Transport

Panel: Speeding up buses

A discussion around the importance and benefits of speeding up buses

Followed by panel discussion and Q&A

11.00

Morning break

Tea & coffee served in the Main Auditorium exhibition area

11:30

Breakout sessions

Delegates choose from 1 of 4

The Great Hall

How much control does an authority really want?

Portsmouth Buses Partnership - embedding passenger growth into a new Enhanced Partnership Delivery Model

Paul Walker, Head of Passenger Transport, Portsmouth City Council

Establishing a new local authority bus company (LABCo)

Speaker from Department for Transport (tbc)

25 Years of bus franchising in the Netherlands: Lessons for the UK's bus reform journey

Tim Edwards, Associate, ITP and Wilco Bos, Haskoning

Breakout room 2

Safety: on and off the bus

Improving safety at Victora bus station: A holistic and multi-disciplinary approach

Jo Bacon, Social and Behavioural Science Technical Director - AtkinsRealis and Simon Castle, Bus Safety Development Manager - Transport for London

Tackling anti-social behaviour and Violence against women and girls a

Alison Edwards, Director of Policy and External Relations, CPT

Portsmouth City Council's response to Violence Against Women and Girls (VAWG) on public transport

Lisa Cook, Head of Transport Operations, Portsmouth City Council

Breakout room 3

Funding and investment

Making the case for investment in bus improvements

Silviya Barrett, Director of Policy and Research, Campaign for Better Transport

Making the case for bus: linking strategy, growth and funding

Joel Hawthorne and Alexander Bell, Steer

Appraising investment in bus technology

Jordan Cousins, Principal Sponsor, Transport for London

Making the numbers work

David Leeder, Managing Partner, Transport Investment Limited

Breakout room 4

Monitoring and evaluation

From Policy to Patronage: evaluating the impacts of Bus Service Improvement Plans

Jordan Di Trapani, Associate, SYSTRA

Bus mileage 2026: who Is gaining, who is losing, and what has changed?

Dan Saunders, Chief Product Officer, Basemap

From data to action: how the North East is using bus performance data to drive change

Heather Jones, Head of Transport Customer Experience, North East Combined Authority, Kate Hamblin, Head of Authorities, CitySwift

13.00

Lunch break

Refreshments served in the Main Auditorium exhibition area

14:00

Breakout sessions

Delegates choose from 1 of 4

The Great Hall

Bus: creating urban rapid transit networks

Exploring TDM approaches to bus network resilience in Milton Keynes

Kirsty Guttridge, Associate, Sustainable Mobility, ITP by Haskoning and a representative from the Milton Keynes City Council team (tbc)

Rollout of Intelligent Traffic Signals in the North-East

Geoff Wade, Geoff Wade - Community Engagement Lead, North East Mayoral Strategic Authority

Integrating buses and Very Light Rail: Lessons from Coventry

Nicola Small, Very Light Rail Programme Director, Coventry City Council and Transport for West Midlands

Breakout room 2

The passenger experience

Mind the gap: what regulators measure and what passengers value

Lydia Horbury, Chief Executive, Bus Users UK

Building and maintaining trust in the bus network

Pam Turton, Director of Buses, West of England Mayoral Combined Authority

The missing piece in your LTP: why community transport delivers

Caroline Whitney, England Director, Community Transport Association

BusConnects Dublin – communities, communication and public consultation

Lauren O’Rourke, MSc Graduate and National Transport Authority

Breakout room 3

Boosting patronage

Speakers to be confirmed

Breakout room 4

Innovation showcase: products, tools, services, skills & training

15:15

Afternoon break

Tea & coffee served in the Function Room exhibition area

15.45

The Great Hall

Closing plenary: devolution and delivery

As local government is re-organised and new Combined Authorities take over responsibility for transport plans, strategies, investment and bus operations throughout their regions, what will be the priorities for improving bus services and how will they be delivered?

Panellists to be announced...