Changes to bus schedules on the guided busway that include additional services to Addenbrooke’s Hospital and improved frequency from St Ives to Cambridge will come into effect from 19 May.
Operator Stagecoach East said the updates, which have been brought forward from June, aim to tackle overcrowding at stops coming into Cambridge at peak times.
They are being introduced following the reopening of the southern section of busway track between Trumpington and Cambridge rail station.
Changes made in April were intended to improve efficiency, reduce the cost of service provision, and allow customers to make the most of the southern busway, but in fact they meant that some services were overcrowded.
The changes were based on the expectation that the number of customers using the bus to get to school and college would reduce from April – as it usually does – and improvements in efficiency with long diversions no longer in place. This meant that more customers than expected wanted to use services, meaning that some customers could not get their
usual bus.
The changes include the introduction of two new services along the southern section of the busway to work with the A service and provide a combined 10-minute peak frequency between Trumpington Park & Ride, the railway station and Addenbrooke’s Hospital, from Monday to Friday.
The new H service will operate between Trumpington Park & Ride and Addenbrooke’s Hospital during morning peak times.
The new R service will operate between Trumpington Park & Ride, Addenbrooke Hospital and Cambridge railway station.
Additional resources will also be added during the morning peak to provide greater capacity between St Ives and Cambridge. This means that routes A and B will provide a combined 10-minute frequency along the main section of the guided busway track from St Ives into Cambridge.
Route B will extend to serve Long Road Sixth Form College from Monday to Friday at selected times. These journeys will replace the current C service.
Managing director Darren Roe said: “We have a responsibility to continually improve services for our customers and to reduce the cost of service. We made the initial changes in the expectation of doing just that, but the fact is that they did not work.
“We deeply regret that we have not given some of our customers the service they have a right to expect, so we have worked around the clock for the traffic commissioner to accept these early changes, so everyone will be able to get where they want to go.
“It is always vital that we monitor our services and make updates so that we are providing services where and when people actually want to travel.
“I hope that these latest service updates will improve still further the capacity, ease and reliability of our services.”
