The Bus Industry Monitor (BIM) project has two primary objectives:

• to fill the gaps in research by maintaining a database on all relevant 'hard' data on subsidy, turnover, profits, investment, policy initiatives, patronage, competition and costs.
• to provide comprehensive and detailed reference material on a regularly updated basis on the issues of concern to managers, planners, decision makers and all those concerned with the future of the bus industry.

The project comprises a number of different workstreams, which enable individual reports and web pages to be updated progressively as more recent data becomes available.

The workstreams are:

1. The Market for Bus Services

• Statistical information on patronage, revenue and fare trends
• Influences on demand for bus travel

2.  Industry Structure and Ownership

• Statistical analysis of the current pattern of industry ownership, including maps and market share calculations
• Set in the context of the historic evolution of the industry since it was founded in the early years of the 20th century.

3.  Public Spending on Bus Services

• Trends in local and national government financial support.
• The analysis is designed to look at relative costs and developments, and provide detailed authority-by-authority information on spending trends.

4.  Investment & Fleet Analysis

• Examining vehicle purchase and investment decisions for all major operators
• Analysis of contrasting investment levels by operator and operator type

5.  Industry Performance

• The overall financial performance of the industry
• The results of individual operating companies
• Performance analysed by region, industry sector and ownership type
• KPIs of performance with national and regional league tables
• Movements in operating costs
• The structure of industry costs
• Key trends in labour costs and productivity.

Company Reports

In addition to the analysis work, the project provides reports on individual operators, groups and holding companies, including

• company results
• investment decisions

Getting the Data

Bus Industry Monitor data can be obtained in two ways:

• By purchasing published reports published through the year on the different workstreams, available as hard copies
• By taking out a subscription to our online service, which contains all the information we produce, plus individual company reports. It is regularly updated with new research and analysis.