Comfort and Convenience

1 July, 2010

When running a busy transport interchange in regular use by thousands of people a day, often round the clock, there are many issues for the facilities manager to consider. In addition to the usual priorities of reducing costs, complying with legislation and promoting sustainability, it is essential to ensure passenger comfort and safety and the continued smooth running of the transport service. The best way to ensure this is through good planned and reactive maintenance.

In years gone by, planned preventative maintenance was often seen as an overhead. However, regular checks and servicing of mechanical and electrical equipment, the building envelope and fixtures and fittings help ensure units operate efficiently and to maximum life expectancy. This reduces emergency repairs and saves money, while fewer breakdowns mean less disruption to normal operations.

Today’s bus and rail passengers have high expectations and demands. Gone are the days when passengers had to be content with waiting around in cold, draughty (or hot and stuffy) depots. The interchange provider has to be able to offer a level of comfort on a par with a waiting room in an airport. Daily routine checks on heating and air-conditioning systems will ensure they function correctly and to optimum efficiency.

Safety and security are important considerations. In the past, some transport facilities could be intimidating at night, not helped by being poorly lit and prone to vandalism and attack. Lighting should, therefore, be well maintained, helping passengers feel safe and comfortable while awaiting their bus or train connection.

Many transport facilities are likely to include washrooms, and where this is the case it is important that they are maintained to the highest standards of hygiene with no risk of legionella contamination. Preventative maintenance should include regular testing and recording of all water temperatures in washrooms to ensure compliance with legionella requirements. An annual full chlorination treatment would see that any bacteria are eliminated.

Emergency response
Any building or facility that is heavily used by the public is likely to incur deliberate damage. This is why any planned maintenance programme needs to be complemented by an emergency repairs service. It is important to be able to respond to incidents quickly, as the damage could prevent the interchange from functioning properly or cause loss of comfort for passengers.

For example, in warmer weather air-conditioning refrigeration units can be heavy users of refrigerant gas; should the level of refrigerant gas fall below a certain level, this can lead to failure of the system. This should be repaired as quickly as possible.

Many modern bus stops offer a facility alerting passengers to the time of the next scheduled bus. These services are powered by electricity, so any failure means the service does not operate effectively. Engineers need to be able to respond swiftly to ensure that customers have access to the information they need in real time about their next connection. (Increasingly, many bus stops are lit by solar power, and the maintenance programme should take account of this.)

With transport interchanges, running to time is of the essence and having a well-managed, well-maintained facility is key to this. A planned preventative maintenance service, complemented by an efficient emergency response service, is essential, and this is best achieved by a good working partnership between the interchange and the FM provider.

Case study: South Yorkshire Passenger Transport Executive
Powerminster Gleeson Services has just taken over a planned and reactive maintenance contract with South Yorkshire Passenger Transport Executive (SYPTE). The contract covers four transport interchanges, 3500 bus stops and 7100 pieces of on-street infrastructure. SYPTE wanted to work with a facilities management provider that was well resourced in the local area and employed its own engineers, who could respond quickly to any requests.

SYPTE’s interchanges are modern buildings with air conditioning or central heating. If any of the building services in these facilities breaks down, it can lead to discomfort and inconvenience for passengers. Regular checks are therefore made on the heating and air-conditioning systems. Water temperatures are regularly checked in washrooms to ensure compliance with legionella requirements, and chlorination treatment is carried out each year to eliminate bacteria.

Powerminster’s engineers are issued with hand-held PDAs, allowing them to be deployed quickly to any of the interchanges or bus stops and address any issues on site within two hours.

If an emergency response is required, the client contacts Powerminster’s 24-hour call centre and an engineer is immediately deployed through the PDA system to address the problem. This means that any damage to facilities, breakdown or failure in systems, or anything that could impair passenger comfort is addressed within a short time frame.

One of the main considerations is that the high-mast lighting is well maintained. This is essential to ensure maximum safety for both the passengers and the bus drivers once darkness falls.

Powerminster’s in-depth reporting procedures were a prime factor in the award of the contract, providing complete visibility of all activities for the client. The client has access to all activity in real time to check progress, and to see that the work is carried out in line with the KPIs of the service level agreement.

Employing local skilled people is an important part of the contract. SYPTE operates transport interchanges across three South Yorkshire towns. After being awarded the contract, Powerminster transferred under TUPE three existing staff to work as part of its organisation, and also created five new jobs for maintenance engineers.