A raft of improvements to bus services in the West of England is set to be introduced,after feedback from thousands of residents across the region who responded to the Next stop, better buses survey.
Following on from a multi-million-poundinvestment in a range of new bus services across the region, including anew hourly service connecting Cam and Chew Valleys to Bath and Bristol and betterconnections to Yate Town Centre, new plans have been announced todrive forward better buses in the West – ahead of a wider Bus Plan coming to October’s meeting of the Mayor and council leaders. These initial initiatives include:
Mayor’s ‘Loo and Brew’ interchange fund
- 91% of those surveyed strongly agreed or agreed with the overall ambitions in the Bus Plan, including a network you can trust, a network which feels safe and accessible, a network that takes you where and whenyou need to go, a network fit for the future, and a network that is affordable and offers good value for money
- Feedback showed that switching from one bus to another is part of everyday travel for many people across the region, and that making these connections smooth and enjoyable is a key part of making our bus networkaccessible and trusted
- The Mayor’s ‘Loo and Brew’ fund, set to be backed by at least £100,000 from the combined authority, will be available for local communities to bid into to help make their travel interchangehubs as welcoming as possible, and could include spaces to buy refreshments and access toilet facilities
AvonRider goes digital in new WESTrider day pass:
- Of the 4,823 people who responded to the survey, 47% said the most important change to tickets and pricing they would like to see is having one ticket that works on all buses, with 24% saying simple, easy-to-understandticket options is their priority
- The £7 AvonRider day pass, which offers unlimited bus journeys throughout Bath and North East Somerset, Bristol, North Somerset, and South Gloucestershire, saved passengers £350,000 last year thanks to a subsidyfrom the combined authority
- The pass is currently a paper ticket, but is set to become a digital WESTrider ticket too – which passengers can scan on their phone
- The pass will work with a range of operators, including First Bus, Stagecoach, Faresaver, and WESTlink
- It is set to continue saving passengers money throughout the region, with the new digital, one ticket approach incorporating feedback from the bus survey
Bus Passenger Forum
- Following the success of the engagement from the Next stop, better buses survey, the combined authority is committed to carry on listening to feedback from residents and is setting up a Bus Passenger Forum made up of bus passengers from across the West of England
- A representative residents panel will be involved in detailed task and finish objectives, with a QR survey available 24/7 for residents who want to provide feedback on buses
New and improved WESTlink service
- The survey showed that the key changes people wanted in order to use the bus more were reliable services that turn up as expected (47%), more frequent services (20%), and faster journeys (10%)
- The WESTlink service, which offers flexible, on-demand bus services, is set to become fully-integrated with the wider transport network, meaning passengers will be linked to the most efficient public transportroute to make the onward journey as quick and reliable as possible
- The complex zone system is being replaced by a simpler, distance-based system, and the service is expanding into Stockwood, making it better-connected than ever before and offering morefrequent services and faster journeys to thousands of people throughout the region
Travel guides for bus services
- The survey also showed that easily accessible information about bus services and stops is vital to passengers in our region, with 28% of people saying clear and accurate information at stops mattered most whilsttravelling and 24% saying simple, easy-to-understand ticket options is a priority
- Detailed maps and information on new routes, starting with those invested in from July, will be available in a handy new travel guide, and also distributed as a leaflet to areas aroundthe region including Chew Valley, Radstock, and Thornbury and Yate
Helen Godwin, Mayor of the West of England, said:
“Delivering better buses across the West of England is one of our biggest priorities.We have already secured record-breaking investment for transport from the government, and I was delighted to recently announce new bus routes to better connect more of our communities including in the Chew Valley and Thornbury, alongside even more green electricbuses coming soon to our region too.
“Thanks to the thousands of responses to our bus survey, we know that people’spriorities are a bus network they can trust, and one that is safe, accessible, and affordable, and our developing Bus Plan for the region in October will reflect that.
“In the meantime, from our new digital WESTrider ticket to save money across multipleoperators, to expanding and simplifying our WESTlink service and investing to make it easier for people to change buses through my new ‘Loo and Brew’ fund, I hope people can see that we are listening – and that we’re determined to deliver the bus network theWest deserves.”
Councillor Kevin Guy, Leader of Bath & North East Somerset Council; CouncillorTony Dyer, Leader of Bristol City Council and Deputy Mayor of the West of England; Councillor Mike Bell, Leader of North Somerset Council; Councillor Maggie Tyrrell, Leader of South Gloucestershire Council; and Councillor Ian Boulton, Co-Leader of South GloucestershireCouncil, said in a joint statement:
“Buses are vital for people across the West of England – whether it’s accessinghealthcare, getting to work or school, or just staying connected with friends and family.
“We’re really pleased that thousands of people from across the region respondedto the bus survey, and we will continue to engage with local residents, councillors and campaigners as we work with the West of England Combined Authority and bus operators to go even further.”
David Redgewell, bus campaigner from South West Transport Network, said:
“We welcome the setting up of a Bus Passenger Forum by Mayor Helen Godwin and the West of EnglandMayoral Combined Authority, so passengers can have their say on improvements to bus services and hold bus and coach operators to account on the punctuality and reliability of services and other important issues across the network.
“These include better lighting at bus and coach stops, interchange, real-time information systems,and passenger waiting areas – as well as improved facilities for passengers with reduced mobility, wheelchair users, and partly sighted passengers.”
