Sausage company launches free rural bus service
- Published
A sausage company has launched a free bus service to help reduce isolation for people living in rural parts of North Yorkshire.
The nine-seater pink minibus made its first journey on Tuesday, taking passengers from the village of Kirklington for a day out in Masham.
The bus has been bought by local firm Heck Food, and has no set timetable, with residents able to make their own travel bookings.
Alan Normanton, 70, has lived in Kirklington for three years and said travelling around could be “isolating” when getting older.
He told the BBC: “I think the community will benefit from it as it’s difficult when you get older, when people have driven and then no longer can.
“It is difficult to get to these places, Ripon is seven miles away and Thirsk eight miles away so it’s a fair distance.
“It is isolating and it’s difficult when you get older.”
There are some bus services in the Kirklington area, as people can get to Ripon and Thirsk twice a week.
However, residents can book the pink bus service and either drive it themselves, or request a driver.
Heck is offering to pay for the fuel from its community fund.
Margaret Potter, who has lived in the area for 40 years, said the service would mean “everything” to residents who struggled to get around.
She said: “I think the local market towns like Thirsk, Bedale, Northallerton, Ripon, they have everything and to go on a market day would be very beneficial.”
Jane Bristow, who lives in Wath, said: “Hopefully it will be a great asset for everybody, especially everybody who has had to give up their cars.”
Peter Wright, better known as Channel 5's Yorkshire Vet, was among the passengers making the first journey.
He hailed the scheme as a “fantastic initiative”, saying: "The local authorities - one of the first things they cut is public transport.
"Here you are lucky to get a bus going through the village once a week.
“I think it’s a fantastic initiative that they have carried out and it’s something that’s desperately needed in our communities.”
Becky Keeble, from Heck Food, said the bus “already had quite a few bookings and we are just working on the dates".
Listen to highlights from North Yorkshire on BBC Sounds, catch up with the latest episode of Look North or tell us a story you think we should be covering here, external.
Related topics
Related internet links
- Published4 October