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BUS passengers in Swindon are paying the price for heavily-congested roads and increased journey times, Stagecoach West has warned.

The company’s own research has shown the impact congestion is having on its routes in the past 10 years.
It found that the Swindon-to-Highworth route has seen a 26 per cent rise in journey time, while Swindon-to-Oxford saw an 35 per cent increase and passengers travelling from Chippenham to Swindon found their journeys were 50 per cent longer than before.

The company says that due to the congestion, bus speeds have dropped by 10 per cent in the past two years.
It added that the decrease in speed meant an eight per cent rise in operating costs, which despite attempts to shield customers, was pushing prices up for passengers in the long run.
Stagecoach West managing director Rupert Cox said: “This is not specifically about Stagecoach, or any other bus company, it’s about the impact of congestion on bus passengers and other road users in the area and the situation simply cannot continue if we are to continue improving the local bus network and improving the local environment.

“Our passengers are paying the price for short-sighted policies that have led us to this point. We urgently need politicians to take practical action to get our towns and cities moving again.
“Buses are key to delivering this. Effective bus networks can boost the local economy, improve traffic flow, reduce air pollution and help improve air quality.
“We are playing our part by investing in improvements for customers including in digital technology, new routes and new vehicles, but we need politicians to play their part to help buses flourish. All of the tools exist for them to take action now.”

The Swindon Labour Group’s spokesperson for transport, councillor Steve Allsopp, said: “I fully support Stagecoach’s calls for more public transport infrastructure. The money necessary to do this has been cut further and further back as a result of government austerity and we need a significant rethink in Swindon and the region about how more motorists can be persuaded that public transport is a more efficient alternative of travel. We can only do this by making public transport routes more timely and punctual.”

Maureen Penny, parish councillor for Highworth, said: “I would like to see more investment in the servicing of buses so that we don’t have them coming out to Highworth to relieve one that’s broken down.
“At one time we had three buses break down in Highworth, and the buses are usually overcrowded, and they’ll put a single decker on instead of a double decker knowing it’s going to be busy at peak hours.”

Campaigners argue declining numbers of passengers is a sign that unreliable services and rising fares are having an impact.

Figures from the Department for Transport show that passengers in Swindon took 11.7 million bus journeys in 2016-17 – 430,000 fewer than in 2009-10, when figures were first recorded.

The government recently announced that those who cannot work from home should return to work. As a result, we expect to see an increase in people wanting to use the bus, and to maintain social distancing, we are please to be increasing our timetables for you.

We encourage you to follow the official guidelines when making a journey, including wearing a face covering, travelling during off-peak hours, only paying by contactless or mobile app, and making sure you adhere to social distancing on-board where possible.

Sitting together again from Monday 17 May 2021

After a difficult and challenging year or so for us all, we are delighted to share some good news with you!

As the government continues to ease lockdown restrictions, and the world gradually returns to normal, we are thrilled to announce that our customers will once again be able to sit next to each other on-board our buses.

In line with government guidelines, all forward-facing seats will be in use from Monday 17 May - so those travelling with us can sit next to each other once again.

We continue to ask that you wear face coverings, unless you are exempt, and windows should remain open to aid ventilation. All our buses are cleaned to a high standard with regular touch point cleaning throughout the day and have hand sanitiser on-board for customer use. If you prefer to travel when it is less busy on-board, we recommend you avoid peak times and use our busy bus checker on our website and app.

Thank you for your patience throughout lockdown, our team is looking forward to welcoming you on-board as we head towards what promises to be an enjoyable and memorable summer!

Strangers will sit next to one another on buses once more with capacity doubling to 60 passengers in London as coronavirus restrictions ease

From 4 September, following the announcement that Fleming Way will be shut for two years whilst major restructuring of the area is undertaken, all buses will use different bus stops. There will not be as much space available as in Fleming Way, therefore customers are advised to clearly signal by putting your hand out for the bus that you want to stop.

Historically, the new facility will be very much on the route of the North Wiltshire Canal, and interpretation boards will probably be very much in order.

I think it is partly the Wilts and Berks as well, the junction was in the area outside the old Debenhams store near the underpass that is being demolished at the moment. 

If you use the fade on this map (https://maps.nls.uk/geo/explore/#zoom=17.5&lat=51.56312&lon=-1.78538&layers=168&b=1) you will see