Sensational-Adelaide.com

rhino wrote:I honestly don't have any problem with the Adelaide Metro livery. It makes sense to have the yellow front, it's easy to see the busses coming from a long way off, and yellow is an obvious safety colour. There are better liveries, and there are many worse. If you want to see something really bad, have a look at the Yarra Trams livery. What's more important, IMHO, is that the whole of Adelaide Metro shares the same livery, the same corporate identity.

Alyx wrote:http://www.busaustralia.com/forum/downl ... p?id=46136

The Scooter Guy wrote:The South Australian Visitor & Travel Centre has ceased trading when it doesn't really need to. Has it merged into another business?

New SA Travel Hub in Adelaide CBD
15 June 2011

A new travel centre providing State-wide visitor information is set to open in Adelaide’s CBD.

The Grenfell Street premises will replace the current visitor centre on King William Street and will be managed by South Australian company, Holidays of Australia. The South Australian Tourism Commission’s (SATC) Chief Executive, Ian Darbyshire, says Holidays of Australia will provide a comprehensive service to visitors when the centre begins operations on July 1 2011.

Pressman wrote:

The Scooter Guy wrote:The South Australian Visitor & Travel Centre has ceased trading when it doesn't really need to. Has it merged into another business?

Not hard to find out, just did a quick google search
http://www.tourism.sa.gov.au/news/current.asp {go to the bottom of the page}

New SA Travel Hub in Adelaide CBD
15 June 2011

A new travel centre providing State-wide visitor information is set to open in Adelaide’s CBD.

The Grenfell Street premises will replace the current visitor centre on King William Street and will be managed by South Australian company, Holidays of Australia. The South Australian Tourism Commission’s (SATC) Chief Executive, Ian Darbyshire, says Holidays of Australia will provide a comprehensive service to visitors when the centre begins operations on July 1 2011.

The South Australian Visitor & Travel Centre has ceased trading when it doesn't really need to. Has it merged into another business?

The Australian, June 16, 2011

South Australian Tourism Commission chairman Bob Foord has denied any wrongdoing after a family company won a lucrative commercial tender to operate the state's visitor and travel centre.

The commission is closing its flagship walk-in centre for statewide tourism information, the South Australian Visitor and Travel Centre, on July 1 and had offered its operations out to commercial tender.

Commission chief executive Ian Darbyshire, in a letter to tourism operators yesterday, said Holidays Of Australia had been awarded the contract "to be the SATC's commercial partner for the provision of visitor information and management of travel bookings generated by SATC's marketing activity".

The chief executive of Holidays Of Australia is Mr Foord's son-in-law Ben Mead.

Mr Darbyshire was recruited by Mr Foord to replace Andrew McEvoy, who left to head Tourism Australia.

The Australian understands that after announcing Mr Darbyshire's appointment, Mr Foord reorganised his family company and split it. Mr Mead, formerly chief executive of Mr Foord's Proud Australia company, became chief of Holidays Of Australia.

Mr Foord last night denied there was any special deal to benefit his family's companies.

"I am very relaxed about this," he told The Australian.

"It has been handled with great probity. I did not know as chairman that my son-in-law was even bidding . He won it, but I didn't even know about it until

I was advised this morning . . . He's won it in his own right. It has been handled completely appropriately. I am not associated with the business, but he happens to be my son-in-law."

Mr Foord said the matter would not even come before the board for discussion. "The board does not assess the tenders. There is a team of staff at the tourism commission that run all that and do the negotiations."

Mr Darbyshire said in a statement that the "strictest" procurement processes were followed. "The final contract and commercial terms were prepared in conjunction with the Crown Solicitor's Office and I am 100 per cent confident in the probity of the process. Not even the SATC Board was at any time privy to the details of the process or any of the tender submissions."

Declining visitor numbers were blamed for the tourism centre's closure. The commission plans to concentrate on online marketing.

The Australian, July 27, 2011

SA Tourism Commission chairman has quit a month after an investigation began over his son-in-law's contract to run the privatised SA Travel Centre.

Bob Foord, who has been chairman for the past five years, tendered his resignation yesterday to Tourism Minister John Rau.

Mr Foord believes the successful outsourcing of the travel centre would be "hindered" if he remained chairman.

He told The Advertiser yesterday there had been nothing improper in the way Holidays of Australia, run by his son-in-law Ben Mead, had been selected by the SATC to take over the previously government-run travel centre - and run it from a Grenfell St, city building owned by Mr Foord.

"The selection process was conducted at arms-length from the board by the SATC management team, using a panel of experts including advice from an independent probity auditor," he said.

"The board at no time had any involvement in, or influence over, the decision."

Senior tourism industry figures told The Advertiser they did not believe there was any wrongdoing in the selection process but the outcome was "too close for comfort" when the contract went to Mr Mead.

Mr Rau told Parliament last month he had demanded the Commission provide him with details relating to the deal, including probity controls used during the selection process.

Mr Foord acknowledges controversy erupted over the Holidays of Australia selection, even though he had no knowledge of it until it was announced.

"It will be difficult for Holidays of Australia to be successful and may leave Ben open to criticism and unfair innuendo that he is receiving preferential treatment because of my role," he said.

"Ben is a young man with a great deal of enthusiasm. He is just the sort of person that the tourism industry needs."

Mr Foord's current term was to have ended next year.

He is stepping out 12 months early but confident the SA tourism industry is in good shape and enjoying rising visitor numbers.

Under his guidance, the commission had cut overheads, including reducing staff from nearly 200 to 107, to allow more funding for marketing.

Mr Foord is staying on as chairman of the Adelaide Entertainment Centre.

stumpjumper wrote:

The South Australian Visitor & Travel Centre has ceased trading when it doesn't really need to. Has it merged into another business?

Scooterguy, did you miss the publicity about this? SA Tourism Commission had a new chairman to replace Bill Spurr - Bob Foord of Holidays of Australia, and a new CEO, Ian Darbyshire, formerly of Toop and Toop Real Estate.

Darbyshire is committed to online promotion, and the tender for face to face operations (to replace the closed tourist bureau on King William Street) was won by Ben Mead (also of Holidays of Australia) with the face to face operation being moved to the basement of the Holidays of Australia building in Grenfell Street.

The trouble is that Ben Mead is Bob Foord's son-in-law.

Here's a press report:

The Australian, June 16, 2011

South Australian Tourism Commission chairman Bob Foord has denied any wrongdoing after a family company won a lucrative commercial tender to operate the state's visitor and travel centre.

The commission is closing its flagship walk-in centre for statewide tourism information, the South Australian Visitor and Travel Centre, on July 1 and had offered its operations out to commercial tender.

Commission chief executive Ian Darbyshire, in a letter to tourism operators yesterday, said Holidays Of Australia had been awarded the contract "to be the SATC's commercial partner for the provision of visitor information and management of travel bookings generated by SATC's marketing activity".

The chief executive of Holidays Of Australia is Mr Foord's son-in-law Ben Mead.

Mr Darbyshire was recruited by Mr Foord to replace Andrew McEvoy, who left to head Tourism Australia.

The Australian understands that after announcing Mr Darbyshire's appointment, Mr Foord reorganised his family company and split it. Mr Mead, formerly chief executive of Mr Foord's Proud Australia company, became chief of Holidays Of Australia.

Mr Foord last night denied there was any special deal to benefit his family's companies.

"I am very relaxed about this," he told The Australian.

"It has been handled with great probity. I did not know as chairman that my son-in-law was even bidding . He won it, but I didn't even know about it until

I was advised this morning . . . He's won it in his own right. It has been handled completely appropriately. I am not associated with the business, but he happens to be my son-in-law."

Mr Foord said the matter would not even come before the board for discussion. "The board does not assess the tenders. There is a team of staff at the tourism commission that run all that and do the negotiations."

Mr Darbyshire said in a statement that the "strictest" procurement processes were followed. "The final contract and commercial terms were prepared in conjunction with the Crown Solicitor's Office and I am 100 per cent confident in the probity of the process. Not even the SATC Board was at any time privy to the details of the process or any of the tender submissions."

Declining visitor numbers were blamed for the tourism centre's closure. The commission plans to concentrate on online marketing.

And another one:

The Australian, July 27, 2011

SA Tourism Commission chairman has quit a month after an investigation began over his son-in-law's contract to run the privatised SA Travel Centre.

Bob Foord, who has been chairman for the past five years, tendered his resignation yesterday to Tourism Minister John Rau.

Mr Foord believes the successful outsourcing of the travel centre would be "hindered" if he remained chairman.

He told The Advertiser yesterday there had been nothing improper in the way Holidays of Australia, run by his son-in-law Ben Mead, had been selected by the SATC to take over the previously government-run travel centre - and run it from a Grenfell St, city building owned by Mr Foord.

"The selection process was conducted at arms-length from the board by the SATC management team, using a panel of experts including advice from an independent probity auditor," he said.

"The board at no time had any involvement in, or influence over, the decision."

Senior tourism industry figures told The Advertiser they did not believe there was any wrongdoing in the selection process but the outcome was "too close for comfort" when the contract went to Mr Mead.

Mr Rau told Parliament last month he had demanded the Commission provide him with details relating to the deal, including probity controls used during the selection process.

Mr Foord acknowledges controversy erupted over the Holidays of Australia selection, even though he had no knowledge of it until it was announced.

"It will be difficult for Holidays of Australia to be successful and may leave Ben open to criticism and unfair innuendo that he is receiving preferential treatment because of my role," he said.

"Ben is a young man with a great deal of enthusiasm. He is just the sort of person that the tourism industry needs."

Mr Foord's current term was to have ended next year.

He is stepping out 12 months early but confident the SA tourism industry is in good shape and enjoying rising visitor numbers.

Under his guidance, the commission had cut overheads, including reducing staff from nearly 200 to 107, to allow more funding for marketing.

Mr Foord is staying on as chairman of the Adelaide Entertainment Centre.

The Australian, June 16, 2011

South Australian Tourism Commission chairman Bob Foord has denied any wrongdoing after a family company won a lucrative commercial tender to operate the state's visitor and travel centre.

The commission is closing its flagship walk-in centre for statewide tourism information, the South Australian Visitor and Travel Centre, on July 1 and had offered its operations out to commercial tender.

Commission chief executive Ian Darbyshire, in a letter to tourism operators yesterday, said Holidays Of Australia had been awarded the contract "to be the SATC's commercial partner for the provision of visitor information and management of travel bookings generated by SATC's marketing activity".

The chief executive of Holidays Of Australia is Mr Foord's son-in-law Ben Mead.

Mr Darbyshire was recruited by Mr Foord to replace Andrew McEvoy, who left to head Tourism Australia.

The Australian understands that after announcing Mr Darbyshire's appointment, Mr Foord reorganised his family company and split it. Mr Mead, formerly chief executive of Mr Foord's Proud Australia company, became chief of Holidays Of Australia.

Mr Foord last night denied there was any special deal to benefit his family's companies.

"I am very relaxed about this," he told The Australian.

"It has been handled with great probity. I did not know as chairman that my son-in-law was even bidding . He won it, but I didn't even know about it until

I was advised this morning . . . He's won it in his own right. It has been handled completely appropriately. I am not associated with the business, but he happens to be my son-in-law."

Mr Foord said the matter would not even come before the board for discussion. "The board does not assess the tenders. There is a team of staff at the tourism commission that run all that and do the negotiations."

Mr Darbyshire said in a statement that the "strictest" procurement processes were followed. "The final contract and commercial terms were prepared in conjunction with the Crown Solicitor's Office and I am 100 per cent confident in the probity of the process. Not even the SATC Board was at any time privy to the details of the process or any of the tender submissions."

Declining visitor numbers were blamed for the tourism centre's closure. The commission plans to concentrate on online marketing.