Peter White, Emeritus Professor of Public Transport Systems, was invited to give oral evidence to the House of Lords Built Environment Committee on the role, funding, and delivery of buses, as part of its inquiry on public transport in towns and cities on Tuesday 22 March 2022.
Professor White – who gave evidence alongside James Freeman, Chair of Bus Rapid Transit UK, and former Managing Director at First West of England - was asked a wide range of questions by committee members. Among the questions raised, members asked whether he thought the use of bus services was likely to grow in the long-term, what makes a high-quality bus service, and the extent to which current Government policy initiatives, including the National Bus Strategy and proposals in the Levelling Up White Paper, are likely to improve public transport services for consumers.
Speaking about his appearance at the Built Environment Committee, Peter White said: ‘In responding to the wide of range of questions put by member of the Committee, it was very valuable to draw on many years of research at the University on assessing bus industry performance. By and large I felt that James Freeman and I were giving broadly similar responses on issues raised, from both industry and academic experience.’
Peter White joined the University of Westminster (then known as the Polytechnic of Central London) in 1971, as a Lecturer in Public Transport Systems, receiving the title of Professor in 1992. Although he retired from regular teaching work at the University in September 2015, he continues in the role of Emeritus Professor, with ongoing research and related writing in public transport.
Watch the full oral evidence session on parliamentlive.tv.
