New Sunday bus service and cross-city connection coming to the West of England

In Bath, service 8 (city centre to Kingsway) will now also operate on Sundays and bank holidays while in Bristol the service 43 route (Bishopsworth to Cadbury Heath via city centre) will be extended south to Imperial Park, providing more cross-city connections from Kingswood, and the service 77 route (currently Henleaze to Horfield via city centre) will change to create a new local link and cross-city connection between Gloucester Road and Clifton with a half-hourly timetable. This will result in about nine buses per hour serving Clifton from the city centre during peak times.

The changes are part of a bi-annual review of services by First Bus in the West of England, and will come into force on Sunday 6th April. Other changes in Bristol include:

• Service 41 (Avonmouth to Kingswood) – an extra later journey from the city centre to Avonmouth on weekdays and Saturdays. 
• Service 42 (Bristol city centre to Cherry Gardens via St George) – the route will change to serve the area of Cadbury Heath instead of Cadbury Heath Road, providing more transport opportunities for local residents and better connections with other local services.
• Service 1 (Cribbs Causeway to Broomhill via city centre) – extra evening journeys on weekdays and Saturdays between Bristol Temple Meads Station and Henbury Crow Lane. 
• Service 44 (Bristol city centre to Cadbury Heath via St George) / 45 (Bristol city centre to Cherry Gardens via St George) – more peak journeys added to meet high demand in the St George area. 
• Bristol City Council has also announced the introduction of a number of new and improved services which First Bus will operate on its behalf, including later and Sunday services on the m2

Other changes in Bath and the surrounding area include:

• Services 39 and X39 (Bath to Bristol) – timetable will change to reflect traffic patterns along the A4.
• Service D2x (Bath to Frome) – the route will change and travel into Bath through Midford and down the Wellsway, instead of via Radstock and Peasedown St. John and its frequency will be reduced because of low passenger numbers.

There are changes to other services and timetables, and customers are advised to check their routes before travelling from April 6. Further details about all the changes are available on the First West of England website, and detailed timetables will be published in the coming weeks.

George Burton, Head of Network for First Bus in the West of England, said: “We review our bus network twice a year in partnership with local transport authorities, including the West of England Mayoral Combined Authority. These reviews give us a chance to respond to changes in demand and address any issues we have with reliability and punctuality.

“We use data, our own expertise, insight from local authorities and feedback from the public and stakeholders to decide where improvements can be made. Our latest changes will come into effect on April 6 and I’m pleased to announce that we are making lots of improvements across the network, including a new Sunday service in Bath and more cross city services in Bristol, and where we are amending some timetables we have made changes elsewhere to minimise disruption to customers and ensure, where possible, they are able to continue travelling by bus.”

First Bus has consulted on the new routes with local authorities, including the West of England Mayoral Combined Authority, ahead of them coming into effect in April.