'Major changes' announced to county's bus network

Bus campaigner David Redgewell called it the biggest changes in 33 years

"Major" changes are being made to Stagecoach's bus network across Gloucestershire.

Updated routes will be launched in Cheltenham, Gloucester and Stroud from September, as leaders from the bus firm said they recognised there are ways they can do things better.

The changes will include increasing the frequency of existing routes, updating some and introducing others.

It is being paid for, in part, with money from Gloucestershire County Council (GCC). A GCC spokesperson said it will be a "major step forward" in improving services.

Councillor Roger Whyborn, cabinet member for sustainable transport and road safety, said a lot of services will be more frequent.

"Especially on the vital artery from Cheltenham town centre to Cheltenham Spa station. And more stops will be reached," he said.

"We have much more to do across the whole county to improve services and connections, but it's an important step in the Bus Service Improvement Plan."

Gloucestershire bus campaigner David Redgewell called it the biggest changes in Cheltenham "in 33 years".

"There's a lot of improvements," he said.

What are the changes?

Among the changes, service A in Cheltenham will become more frequent, running every 12 minutes.

It will also extend beyond GCHQ to Arle Court Transport Hub, linking it to Park and Ride facilities and the national coach network.

A new service F to Warden Hill and Hatherley will pass near to Cheltenham General Hospital, alongside existing services L and 51.

Service 94 will be split into services 94/95. The new 95 service will provide a link from Bamfurlong Road past Gloucestershire Airport which is not currently served by public transport.

Both services will be rerouted to link the three main Gloucestershire University campuses.

More journeys will run on service 2/2A giving a frequency of 15 minutes between Gloucester and Upton St Leonards and the 64 between Gloucester and Stroud will be increased to run every 30 minutes at peak times.