In the latest of its series of webinars, RHA Coaches introduced Coach Operations Manager Andy Warrender and revealed more details about membership, which will now begin from 1 March
Having announced the launch of its new RHA Coaches membership shortly before Christmas, the RHA has been working behind the scenes to put the necessary support and expertise in place before the roll out, which was scheduled for April 1. As part of this, Andy Warrender has been appointed Coach Operations Manager, as reported on page 7 of this issue, and made his first appearance in that role on RHA Coaches’ latest webinar, which looked more closely at the policy and media sides of the RHA and the membership options, as well as giving Andy a chance to introduce himself.
After an introduction from UK Membership Director Phil Snowden, Managing Director for Policy Rod McKenzie kicked off the session by reminding attendees of the RHA’s strong record of fighting for its members and winning, as a result of its policy of campaigning in public, rather than behind closed doors. “We want our voice to be heard,” he said, highlighting that engagement with the wider media can and does play an important role in what the RHA does and how it does it. 
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To emphasise the point, Rod pointed to the media reaction to its campaigning around the HGVs stuck at Dover recently, and how the RHA’s message reached not just those in the industry but the wider community through mainstream media, helping to get the message across as well as increase awareness of both the immediate problem, and the potential impact. Earlier on in the pandemic, the RHA drew attention loudly to the ‘outrageous’ ban on truckers being able to use public toilets and facilities whilst going about their essential duties. “We stepped in and it made a difference,” Rod said, “because we were prepared to fight hard and campaign in public.”
Reiterating the damage done to the coach sector, Rod said the impact had been ‘disastrous,’ pointing to the heavy reliance on inbound tourism, which may take even longer to recover than domestic travel: as he pointed out, even once Britain is geared up to go again, that may not be the case for other countries whose recovery could be slower than our own.
“Any return will be limited, yet there is still no specific Covid-19 support,” he continued, “and many operators have found it hard to access the funding that has been available,” making the point that whilst to a great degree the coach industry is a part of the leisure sector, it has had no access to the funding for leisure industries.
Despite the Scottish government’s £10m fund for operators based there, the future remains very uncertain for others across the UK, and Rod highlighted that a key focus of RHA Coaches will be to ensure that the message is heard in the corridors of power at the highest level, as well as pushing the government to promote coach holidays and coach travel in the UK as safe, with a view to domestic travellers taking the place of those absent inbound tourists and helping operators regrow their business.
Eliminate, minimise, offset
Another area in which Rod said the RHA is very active is that of low-emissions zones, of which the UK has over 60 either in place or in planning. “We take air quality seriously,” he said, and emphasised the RHA’s motto of ‘eliminate, minimise, offset’ when it comes to emissions. That is to say, eliminate them by switching where possible, minimise them when switching is not possible, and offset those which can’t be minimised, a mantra which could easily be applied to many other areas of industry, and life in general, when it comes to the environment. He highlighted the disconnect between government policy of restricting access to city centres, and the idea of the coach being much more environmentally friendly, saying that the government seems to have a misunderstanding of coach travel, which RHA Coaches will set out to tackle.
“The government fails to understand the lifecycle of coaches,” he continued, using the phrase ‘stranded assets’ to describe the situation many operators find themselves in, where they are forced to upgrade or invest in Euro VI, but their perfectly serviceable Euro V coaches are unsellable.
Not only that, but whilst funding has been available in the areas affected, this is generally of little use to coach operators based some distance away, but whose vehicles regularly travel into the area. Rod pressed home the point that this is another area in which the RHA has been working to help reshape and redirect government policy.
Furthermore, as the government moves away from diesel, and it will publish a hydrogen strategy in 2021, Rod said the RHA would ensure that the voice of large vehicle operators is heard, to ensure that the government fully understands the implications on the ground. “The coach sector must be able to communicate issues with the government, which needs to understand before committing to punitive policies.
“Our main ask for 2021 is that coaches are counted as part of the leisure sector, and a grace period for Euro V,” he concluded, urging potential members to get involved. “We can’t do it without you. We listen to you and act for you.”
Launch brought forward
After introducing himself, Andy Warrender emphasised what he, and the RHA, were able to do for the coach sector. He re-iterated the message that RHA Coaches is about member input, and that the RHA is not a top-down organisation, as well as praising the huge amount of work done over the last six weeks.
In line with demand, he continued, the date for the launch has been brought forward to 1 March, with applications being taken from 19 February, one day after the next and final in the series of introductory webinars. The key question that has been on everyone’s lips is how much will it cost, and Andy went on to address this. As revealed previously, the cost will not exceeded £1,000 for the first year, and Andy emphasised that for the first year, it has been kept as low as possible to reflect the state of the industry, though went on to say that from year two, it will reflect the standard RHA rates.
Single vehicle operators will pay £150 for the first year, whilst those with two-five coaches will pay £350. For operators of six-10 coaches the fee will be £550, whilst those with 11 or more will pay the higest rate of £800, all plus VAT of course. Those who join early will have the benefit of being able to take part in a series of round-table events scheduled to take place in March, which will cover the critical role played by the coach industry (4 March) and the road to a greener future (18 March).
Andy went on to talk about the importance of a close relationship with the government at a high level. Not for the first time, mention was made of direct messaging between senior government figures and the RHA, with a focus on getting the message higher up, he said, than some other representative bodies are able to, as well as into the mainstream media, which the RHA has a track record of doing successfully. Immediate plans are to ensure that the difference between bus and coach is on the government’s radar, and in the longer term to push for a more detailed road map on the way forward for the change to alternative fuels, for vehicles and infrastructure.
Having set its main goal for 2021 to see that the coach sector is recognised as part of the leisure sector, only time will tell how successful RHA Coaches will be. But with just one more online event to go before membership opens, whether you are pleased to see the RHA enter the coach sector or believe that strengthening existing representation is the way to go, it seems that the RHA is not going into this lightly.
coaches.rha.uk.net
