BUS firm Tates Travel, which has been subject to high levels of complaints about missed services and unreliable vehicles operating in the Penistone area has escaped an £18,000 fine after promising improvements.
The company was the focus of increased complaints about the quality of its services, with those living in villages around Penistone left with no alternative to expensive taxi journeys when buses failed to turn up.
Initial work by South Yorkshire Passenger Transport Executive failed to bring about improvements and the company was referred to a hearing in front of the Traffic Commissioner, who is responsible for the licences which allow public transport companies to operate.
Evidence put to that hearing showed what Commissioner Kevin Rooney described as a ‘very significant number’ of complaints against the firm, which was ‘highly unusual’.
As a result, he imposed fines totalling £18,150, but gave the company an opportunity to avoid that penalty by taking steps to improve the quality of their services instead.
Read more in this weeks Barnsley Chronicle
