Worcestershire launches county-wide initiative to improve public transport

Worcestershire County Council has launched Connect Worcestershire, a partnership with local transport operators intended to bring bus services, passenger information, ticketing initiatives and planned transport improvements together through a single source of information.

image: Worcestershire County Council

The initiative is being delivered through the council's Bus Service Improvement Plan (BSIP) and its Enhanced Partnership with local operators. It is intended to give residents and visitors clearer information about available services and planned investment, rather than introduce a new transport service.

Connect Worcestershire will cover conventional bus services alongside Worcestershire on Demand, the county's demand-responsive transport service. The council said the latter carried more than 80,000 passengers during the past year as its coverage expanded across the county, including areas where fixed-route services are limited.

The programme also brings together information on ticketing initiatives and proposed improvements to passenger information, bus-stop infrastructure, wayfinding and security. The council said the aim is to make journeys easier to plan and reduce uncertainty for passengers.

Worcestershire's Enhanced Partnership brings the county council together with local operators to coordinate improvements to the bus network. Operators supporting the Connect Worcestershire launch include First Bus, Diamond Bus, Astons Coaches and LMS Travel.

The council said Connect Worcestershire will provide updates on service improvements, transport investment and future projects, while giving passengers information on the different public transport options available.

The initiative is currently focused on bus travel and related demand-responsive services. The council said further improvements will include work to make connections between services easier to understand and to provide more consistent passenger information across the network.

Many of the improvements are being supported through Worcestershire's BSIP funding from the Department for Transport, with the Connect Worcestershire platform intended to provide a central point for information about how that investment is being used.