And therein lies the difficulty. Having spoken to a Belgian operator, he says the school bus situation is quite clear. The driver must have D1 entitlement (they don't have the 101 exemptions there), but the school does not need an operators licence providing only the school's children and staff are carried. They don't have the equivalent of the s19 permits there. Drivers hours are strictly observed as it is the safety of the passengers that is paramount, not whether they are paying some sort of fare/profit/hire and reward or whatever.

The law on this is the same across the EU, it is just that this country has been selective on what EU standard laws it obeys, even though I have traced all this back to the 1930 Road Traffic Act (UK law, before the invention of the EU, so don't blame them).

My bus number (if any): RML2532

Here's the latest update from the Community Transport Association along with a link from the DaFT. Basically the CTAs MUST licence their drivers properly with category D licences with driver CPC nd their vehicles MUST be licenced PSVs.

Link to follow...watch this space...

here it is....
http://ctauk.us11.list-manage.com/track/click?u=9bde7c95796a4957e726cee8e&id=c4561c1fca&e=2e22699cb1

My bus number (if any): RML2532

I've just had sight of this letter via another source. Well done Martin, you're a hero. Apparently he had the DfT cornered and if they hadn't have published the letter the next step was to take the DfT to court. I know of an operator in Tamworth who lost all their work to a community group that came all the way from Derbyshire to cover contracts at something like £60 per run: way below market rates.

My bus number (if any): RM 912

Yes, Martin Allen and Ian Ashman deserve a medal for their dedication to what many including the mighty Confederation of Passenger Transport treated as a lost cause.

They took on not only the CT groups, the DaFT, the UK government but the EU as well. And won. The EU were very considerate to their cause and issued infraction proceedings against the UK Government, hence the change in tack (advise) from the DaFT. They've been chasing this change for over 6 years.

I lost 2 bus tenders to a CT group 10 years ago, hence my interest in the case, and another operator in north Kent lost all his community bus work to an unlicenced CT group set up by one of the multi-national groups! Charity indeed.

My bus number (if any): RML2532

As some of you may have read in the bus trade press, the DfT have now re-written their "guidance" for what it's worth regarding the section 19 and section 21 minibus operations.

Basically all the community Transport operators have been told they MUST have all their drivers properly licenced with D1 entitlement and Driver Certificate of Professional competence , their buses must all be class 6 vehicles, and the operation must have an operators' licence.

This of course has raised consternation and panic amongst the CT operators who have of course known for years of the moves to get them properly licenced and have now at this lat date decided to act, not to get licenced, which would be the easiest option, but to fight the law, which they will undoubtedly lose.

Local authorities have been told they cannot issue tenders for passenger transport to any unlicenced operator as from now.

There is a case before the Midlands Traffic Commissioner against a CT company in the midlands which should prove interesting. This is a continuation from the case which started a couple of weeks ago. Basically, this lot have operated for years with a substantial number of section 19 minibuses, have been told to get licenced, they have not, so now their chances of getting a licence are in jeopardy as they refuse to take the advice given by the Traffic Commissioner. they also risk having their vehicles confiscated as they could be running illegally!

My bus number (if any): RML2532