Decision details

The Executive considered report 102/10 of the head of finance regarding concessionary fares.  On 1 April 2011, the council would no longer have responsibility for concessionary fares, as this would transfer to Oxfordshire County Council.  However, to ease the transition the county council had asked the district councils to continue to provide the customer element of this service for a further year.  This comprised processing applications for bus passes, ordering replacement passes, and dealing with customer enquiries.  The report sought agreement to run this service on the county council’s behalf, and extend and award contracts to third party suppliers to deliver services. 

The portfolio holder reported that the council had the option not to meet the county council’s request.  However, he recommended that there should be no disruption to this service, as a significant number of residents held bus passes in the Vale.  The Executive considered that this service should be provided for 2011/12 on the county council’s behalf but that the full cost of this should be charged to the county.  It was noted that the district councils’ lawyers were finalising the draft agreement.  The council’s contractors had already made commitments to provide this service, subject to the council’s approval.  It was noted that bus passes that expired in March would be renewed automatically for April. 

RECOMMENDED

(a)       To recommend the Council to approve entering into an agency agreement on a full costs recovery basis to provide the customer element of the concessionary fares service on behalf of Oxfordshire County Council for the 2011/12 financial year;

(b)       To recommend the Council to authorise the chief finance officer to negotiate the detail of the agency agreement;

RESOLVED

(c)        That subject to the Council adopting (a) above, to extend the Applied Card Technologies (ACT) contract to provide a customer management system for a 12 month period; and

(d)       That subject to the Council adopting (a) above, to enter into a contract with the existing supplier, Euclid Limited, for the manufacture and despatch of concessionary bus passes for a 12 month period.