Wiltshire Council is celebrating the first anniversary of the launch of its Wiltshire Connect on-demand bus service in the Pewsey Vale. The council says the service has been ‘hugely successful’ having been used more than 55,000 times in the first 12 months, equating to an average of around 1,055 journeys per week. The service includes both on-demand and semi-flexible bus services.
To celebrate the first year of the service, residents were given the opportunity to claim two free rides before 31 August using a promotional code in the Wiltshire Connect booking app.
Councillor Tamara Reay, Wiltshire’s Cabinet Member for Transport, said: “We’re excited to celebrate the one-year anniversary of our successful Wiltshire Connect on-demand bus service. When we launched the service last year we said that it would ‘revolutionise bus travel in the Pewsey vale area’ and it really has made a significant difference. The on-demand bus successfully links our rural communities and reduces social isolation by giving people the opportunity to travel at a time that suits them.”
More than 4,500 people have used the service so far, the council says, who between them made 55,000 journeys in the past year. The council adds that 87% of passengers who use the service rated their journeys at five stars out of five, which it says is a testament to the high standard of service and its value to the communities it serves.
“We have exciting plans to expand this hugely successful service into other rural areas in the county and we’ll have more news on this in the coming months,” the council adds.
