Due to the retirement of a longstanding Transport Manager, the Local authority’s transport operation was running without a qualified Transport Manager. Difficulty in finding a suitably qualified and experienced replacement resulted in systems and processes being disrupted, seriously hampering operational management within the department.
The organisation’s Operator’s Licence was put at serious risk due to several factors;
The absence of a nominated qualified transport manager on the licence, passenger transport operations required a complete revision of compliance arrangements and permits, and in addition, the MOT bay and internal workshop needed capable and efficient leadership. On review the vehicle fleet was found to be outdated, and it was clear that the replacement cycle was not followed, instead the fleet requirements were being met by extended vehicle leases.
Overall, the sourcing of vehicles was not cost-effective and maintenance arrangements were difficult to manage as the administration team were unqualified to manage procurement.
The issues were resolved by implementing a number of remedial solutions. The first was nominating and appointing a qualified transport manager. Conducting an external audit to review the existing compliance arrangements. Subsequently, recommendations of the audit were delivered, and an action plan was agreed upon. A team of consultants were appointed to address the core issues. These changes involved appointing a caretaker transport manager on short notice and the revision of maintenance arrangements and compliance document flow. Improvement in these aspects resulted in meeting the requirements of record keeping. Also, there were changes made to driver management which included setting up driver licences’ checks and applying a driver and vehicle use declaration management system.
Moreover, modifications were made to the cost of operating vehicles. The renegotiation of lease agreements resulted in significant savings. In addition to this, improvements were made to the management of fleet procurement. More importantly, through the redistribution of internal resources, including a recommendation to move people to better-suited positions, a substantial improvement in productivity was gained. This was vital for boosting morale among staff and essential for an effectual working environment. Furthermore, by appointing an interim workshop manager and instigating workshop staff training for MOT and PMI standards, the organisation started to see significant improvements. Amendments to the workshop schedule, PSV operations and driver handbook also contributed to these beneficial changes. Lastly, procuring a transport management software system and bringing in support to implement this system was crucial for the growth of the organisation.
