The Management of AUTOBUSES LA UNÓN, S.A., LA BURUNDESA, S.A.U. and ONIEVA, S.L. (GRUPO ALU) dedicated to the occasional carriage of passengers, work and school transport services and regular passenger transport undertakes to:

  • Continually seek the satisfaction of customers, users and other interested parties, offering a quality service that covers their needs and expectations.
  • Ensure the satisfaction of their personnel, endeavouring that they know perfectly their functions, work processes, work-related and environmental risks and have the necessary means at their disposal.
  • Gauge the quality of the service, according to the criteria of: service offered, accessibility, information, punctuality, customer attention, comfort, safety, and environment, with the aim of improving it.
  • Prevent rather than correct. Especially in matters of occupational risk prevention and road safety, regarding accidents, damage and deterioration to health, attempting to act at the risk source and, as the case may be, putting collective protection before the individual.
  • Promote safety at all levels: recruiting personnel, continuous training, operational control, measurement and follow-up, and carrying-out preventive and collective measures.
  • Inform customers and users on their rights and obligations, as well as protocols and systems of safety of our vehicles.
  • Respect the environment by preventing contamination, controlling consumption, reduction and control of waste.
  • Use of the best and cleanest technologies available, whose application is economically viable.
  • Preference in the acquisition of vehicles, goods, energetically efficient services and the design to improve energy performance.
  • Commitment to ensure the availability of information and resources necessary to achieve the objectives and challenges of energy efficiency.
  • Continually improve the integrated management system.
  • Comply with all legislation that affects the organisation, as well as other requirements to which the organisation subscribes.
  • Establish measures that encourage equality of opportunities and non-sexual discrimination.
  • Develop measures that promote a greater presence of the Basque language in order to offer a comprehensive service.
  • Introduce and maintain international standards of management, with the aim of demonstrating to third parties the commitment to quality, occupational risk prevention, road safety, energy management and the environment.
  • Develop and introduce a Management System of Universal Accessibility and continuous improvement of its efficiency communicating to the whole organisation the importance of satisfying Universal Accessibility requirements known as Moving, Grasping, Location and Communication (MGLC) and their regulations.
  • Achieve a universal environment accessible to all kinds of people with or without disability fulfilling the specific MGLC requirements established in the standard UNE 170001 and applicable legislation, improving their processes in order to avoid all those limitations or barriers which might impede the full enjoyment of the services which Grupo ALU makes available to their users and doing so without undermining their safety and dignity.

Achievement of this Policy is the responsibility of the Management which undertakes to provide the necessary measures to make them known and understood by all personnel.

This Comprehensive Policy is complemented by the annual measurable objectives which are established, if possible, at the beginning of the year.

February 2017

Claudio Lesaca Oloriz

Quality Policy

List of Services

The List of Services and Policy of the Autobuses la Union and La Burundesa reflects the information about the most significant services provided by the company, making visible the levels of quality offered, reinforcing the visible undertaking with users.

Environmental and energy management

In 2012 ALU started the introduction of an Environmental Management System under ISO standard 14001 with the aim of minimising the environmental effects associated with passenger transportation activity by road and the organisation.
Environmental Management System of ALU, since their certification in 2013, in the Lutxana facilities later expanding to their other facilities in Llodio and Vitoria-Gasteiz. In 2014 the carbon footprint was calculated under the ISO standard 14064 later certifying the calculation with the certification body Bureau Veritas. In the month of July 2016 they also fulfilled the requirements of the EMAS Regulation, keeping this registration to the present day.

In February 2017 they were certified to the ISO standard 50001 expanding their environmental commitment to energy management.

COMPREHENSIVE MANAGEMENT POLICY The Management of AUTOBUSES LA UNÓN, S.A., LA BURUNDESA, S.A.U. and ONIEVA, S.L. (GRUPO ALU) express their commitment in the area of environmental and energy management as well as other aspects such as equality, safety and health, the presence of Basque and accessibility. All the staff of ALU have access to the Policy of Integrated Management as it is published in different internal communication channels of the company. it is also accessible to the users of ALU since it is published in the website, www.autobuseslaunion.com

The environmental declaration is available for passengers and other interested parties on request at the email address admin@autobuseslaunion.com

ISO 9001:2015 QUALITY MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS

The introduction of a Quality Management System in accordance with the standard UNE-EN ISO 9001, accredits that Autobuses La Union, SA (hereinafter ALU) uses quality management systems under the requirements of this standard and are evaluated annually by specialised auditors.
This certification as well as the quality integrated system allows ALU to:

  • meet the requirements of customers, users and interested parties who increasingly value certified suppliers.
  • generate greater trust among suppliers and customers.
  • incorporate tools of continuous improvement in the system.

OHSAS 18001 OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY AND HEALTH MANAGEMENT SYSTEM

ALU has an Occupational Safety and Health Management System consistent with the standard OHSAS 18001 accredited by ENAC.
Safety of both the organisation and the service constitutes a priority objective in the company. The introduction of a Health and Safety System under the standard of OHSAS with ENAC accreditation provides benefits to the organisation and guarantees:

  • integration of occupational safety and health processes in the management processes of the company
  • strict compliance with applicable legislation and the fulfilment of legislation on occupational risks
  • undertaking a proactive commitment to ensure the safety and protection of employees
  • improving the efficiency and productivity given the control and management of risks of the work post as well as sick leave
  • the commitment of the enterprise with the well-being of the workers
  • the whole system with the supervision of a team of auditors who review annually the fulfilment of the requirements of the standard.

Certified CSEEA-INSIA SAFETY IN BUS COMPANIES

ALU has been certified under this standard since February 2017, with annual renewal.
The University Institute of Automobile Research (initials in Spanish INSIA) is a research institute of the Polytechnic University of Madrid (initials in Spanish UPM) affiliated to the Higher School of Industrial Engineers and integrated into the Scientific and Technological Park of UPM.
CSEAA is a System of Safety Certification of Bus and Coach Companies based on a methodology developed and validated by INSIA, and which has been developed in cooperation with a broad group of experts in Driving Instruction, Coach Engineering, Maintenance, Exploitation of Coaches and Safety System Management. At the present time it constitutes a unique methodology in Spain and Europe.
This Standard uses a methodolñogy to evaluate safety in the most important aspects that affect passenger transport, such as the human dimension, technical aspects and traffic management procedures, affecting processes of road safety. At the same time, through a system of indicators, it makes it possible to quantify the level of safety, identify the strong and weak points and to detect areas of improvement. It requires the high commitment by enterprises that work with this standard.

UNE ISO 39001:2013 ROAD SAFETY MANAGEMENT SYSTEM

ALU has a Road Safety Management System certified in accordance with Standard UNE ISO 39001 since 2015.
The introduction of a Road Safety System under the standard ISO 39001 provides benefits to the organisation and guarantees:

  • integration of road safety in the management processes of the company
  • promotion of a continuous road safety training system as well as providing a management tool for traffic incidents and accidents.
  • commitment by the company to road safety and to the parties involved.
  • reinforcement of their position in the field of Corporate Social Responsibility.

UNE EN 13816: QUALITY IN PUBLIC TRANSPORT

ALU was certified for the first time under the standard UNE EN 13816 in 2013, and renews it annually.
The standard UNE-EN 13816 on Public Transport provides guidelines to operators so that they assume the commitment of quality in offering their service, with the aim of satisfying the expectations of their customers. Quality commitments must be assumed in eight fields: time, comfort, information, accessibility, safety, service offered, customer service and environmental impact. Furthermore, it guarantees:

  • A tool of analysis and control of the service
  • Greater trust of the users in the transport service.
  • Improvement in the service provision, which at the same time increases the perception which users have of the same.
  • Compatible and auditable with other management systems.

UNE 93200:2008 LIST OF SERVICES

ALU has Bureau Veritas Certification in accordance with standard UNE 93200 Client Service Charter on the following routes:

  • Bilbao>Vitoria-Gasteiz
  • Right bank>Vitoria-Gasteiz
  • Left bank>Vitoria-Gasteiz
  • Bilbao>Vitoria-Gasteiz-Pamplona

The client service charter constitutes a commitment to the client and users of the services provided and the commitments that are assumed. The certification of the same before a certifying entity facilitates evaluating the degree of fulfilment of this commitment. It is outstanding given the orientation of the organisation’s activity to aspects that provide the client with greater value.

UNE 170001-2:2007 UNIVERSAL ACCESSIBILITY MANAGEMENT SYSTEM

Adoption of this Standard and its certification demonstrates the social commitment of ALU with equality of rights and opportunities of all persons, independently of their capabilities.
To facilitate the access of any user to the transport services on these routes, ALU has a methodology which requires the definition and commitment of continuous improvement in the chain of accessibility to the service that affects the following aspects:

  • features of the fleet
  • information on the services provided by the company and its channels
  • the purchase of tickets, marketing season tickets as well as channels of purchase and marketing different documents
  • physical barriers to the services
  • customer service (suggestions, complaints, claims).

ENERGY AND ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT SYSTEM

In 2013 ALU started introducing an Environmental Management System with the aim of minimising the environmental effects associated with road passenger transportation and the organisation.

In the graph below you can see how the different environmental management systems have evolved.

  • 2013-ISO 14001
  • 2014:ISO 14064
  • 2015:ISO 14001 Facilities at Llodio/Vitoria
  • 2016-EMAS
  • 2017:ISO 50001 / PAS 2050-ISO 14064

Environmental Management System of ALU, since their ISO certification 14001 in 2013 for the facilities at Lutxana, later expanded to the certification of all their facilities. In 2014 the carbon footprint was calculated for the first time under the ISO standard 14064 later certifying the calculation with the entity Bureau Veritas. In the month of July 2016 the company also fulfilled the requirements of the EMAS Regulation, maintaining this record to the present day.

Annually, emissions of CO2 are calculated, the calculation being certified biannually, for both the organisation and the transport service under the standards ISO 14064 and PAS 2050. In February 2017 it was certified under the standard ISO 50001 thus expanding their environmental commitment to energy management.

BIKAIN and BAI EUSKARARI CERTIFIED IN LINGUISTIC MANAGEMENT

In Autobuses La Union we are fully committed to the Basque language, having a plan for Basque in operation since 2009. This plan outlines the commitments and actions agreed on, to increase the presence of Basque in the company both in terms of internal relations with suppliers and external services, and externally with passengers. As a result of this effort, ALU obtained the certificate of BIKAIN and BAI EUSKARI.
This linguistic certification, voluntary for companies, evaluates four aspects: linguistic landscape, external communication, internal communication and linguistic policy.

EMAKUNDE CERTIFICATE

As a sign of the strong commitment of the company and its management to the social and labour environment, an Equality Plan was drawn up which obtained the recognition of the collaborating enterprise EMAKUNDE in August 2016.
Including equality in management represents an important element of innovation that contributes to revising all the organisation processes internally and externally with the passenger and client, putting the focus on people. For ALU, it also represents an exercise in corporate social responsibility, contributing to promoting greater social justice.