A joint venture between UK-based National Express and Bahrain’s Ahmed Mansour Al Aali (AMA) will be the new public bus operator in the kingdom.

This follows the signing of a concession agreement between the operator and the Transportation Ministry, said a report in the Gulf Daily News (GDN), our sister publication.

Transportation Minister and Economic Development Board acting chief executive Kamal Ahmed, British Ambassador Iain Lindsay and senior officials from the ministry, National Express and AMA attended the signing ceremony.

Ahmed said National Express was awarded the tender as a result of its prominent position as a bus operator in the UK, with worldwide specialised experience in bus operations.

"As the regulatory body responsible for developing and regulating the land transport industry in Bahrain, the ministry seeks to have in place a comprehensive bus network system that will provide residents and citizens alike with the level of service and coverage they require.

"By putting in place a network that expands to cover as many areas as possible in the kingdom, we hope to enable a better quality of transport.

"This is one of the ministry's most vital strategic projects that plays a critical role in the kingdom's economic development," he said.

"By choosing National Express, one of the industry leaders in this field, the ministry has demonstrated its commitment to upgrading the current public transportation system with what I am sure will be a quality and efficient service," Lindsay said.

"This is the first Middle Eastern market National Express have entered.

"I hope their good work here will enable them to access other public transportation opportunities in the region."

National Express Group chief executive Dean Finch said the contract win built on the company's recent German rail success.

Under-Secretary for Land Transportation and Post Mariam Ahmed Juman said the role of National Express and AMA will be to provide the buses and related equipment, and operate the entire network, including upgrading related facilities, which aims primarily at providing excellence in service to users.

"In addition, she said that bus fleet in operation will increase from the existing 35 buses to 140 once the full network is operational.

Network coverage will increase to around 77 per cent, thereby allowing more residents and citizens with access to the transportation system.

It is expected that the new bus operations will start in February next year for a period of 10 years from the commencement date.

The ministry will be the owner of the buses, while National Express will operate them.

As part of the agreement, around 140 buses will be operated in accordance with pre-agreed specifications, including special facilities for special needs passengers, surveillance cameras and technology services for added convenience to passengers.

A plan for a ticketing system is also in place, with paper tickets to be used at the start and then an automated system will be gradually introduced.

The buses will come in different sizes to fit different routes and requirements, including small buses manufactured by UK company Optare, medium-sized buses and the large (standard) buses manufactured by German company MAN.

The buses will be assigned to 26 different main routes covering all the major areas in Bahrain in accordance with the public transportation routes schedule, in addition to a dedicated service for transporting passengers to and from the airport, which will be equipped with the amenities that travellers require.

Once implemented, it is expected that the new network will increase passenger numbers to around 40,500 on a daily basis.

Simultaneously, the ministry has also been working on improving the current infrastructure of the public bus transportation network, and is in the process of demolishing and rebuilding the bus shelters which form the critical base infrastructure.

With these upgrades, the infrastructure required by the new bus operator will be in place in time for operations.

National Express operates Britain's largest scheduled coach service, the largest urban bus network outside of London and the UK's best performing rail franchise.

It is also the largest private sector bus and coach operator in Spain and will begin operating two German rail franchises next year. - TradeArabia News Service