‘Blethering on a Bus’: A novel engagement method to enhance and encourage community involvement in the transport planning process

The population of the Strathclyde Partnership for Transport (SPT) area is 2.14 million. The proportion of black and ethnic minority (BME) people in the area is 2.4%, which equates to 52% of Scotland’s ethnic minority population. During SPT’s engagement process in developing their Equality Outcomes framework a higher proportion of ethnic minority passengers declined to participate. To ensure that the voice of BME groups are heard and properly represented, it is proposed that more creative and nuanced forms of participation and engagement need to be considered and developed.
This paper will present reflections on a project that explores using a variety of participatory research methods on board a stationary bus, as a novel way to engage with communities in Glasgow with higher proportions of BME groups. By inviting people to have a ‘blether on a bus’, the bus represents a universal and non-stigmatising space and therefore more conducive for engagement of marginalised or poorly represented groups.
This project provides an opportunity to develop the bus consultation method, which was first used to engage parents with children under 5 as part of the Design Council’s Knee High Challenge. Two workshops will evaluate the effectiveness of this bus consultation method in engaging with communities. Using a variety of methods during the first workshop will help to i) assess how well the bus operates as a space for engagement and ii) the effectiveness of the different methods used to engage with participants whilst on the bus. The second workshop is designed to gather further feedback on using a bus for research/engagement activities.
The paper will consider the effectiveness of the bus consultation method in engaging different communities in the transport planning process.