Bus passengers used to catching the 271/2 bus services will be in for a big surprise from Sunday 29th April onwards, when they will discover that First has launched a brand new premium bus service called ‘Discover’.
A new bus service will double the frequency of trips to Bath from Melksham and local campaigners have praised the changes, hailing Melksham as finally being a ‘well connected and accessible town’.
The ‘Discover’ bus service will greatly improve connections between Bath and towns and villages in Wiltshire and Somerset, using easy-to-remember service numbers D1, D2 and D3. These will replace the existing 265, 267 and 271/272.
Service D3 (Bath – Bowerhill / Devizes / Urchfont) will be the new replacement for Services 271 and 272 and will see some significant changes to the timetable.
The Monday to Saturday daytime frequency will be doubled from every 60 minutes to every 30 minutes, which will significantly increase the number of journey opportunities for customers.
All journeys will now operate via Batheaston rather than the Batheaston by-pass. This change of route will increase capacity and frequency along London Road, as well providing a range of new journey opportunities for local residents. There are no other changes to the route.
On Sundays and Public Holidays, the majority of journeys between Melksham and Devizes / Urchfont will be attached to journeys to and from Bath. This means customers will benefit from through journeys and will no longer need to change buses in Melksham.
Melksham local and member of TransWilts Community Rail Partnership, Graham Ellis said,“I’m delighted to see the enhancement of the service. It is now easier for people to leave their cars at home and get into Bath on the D3.
“If we look back five years, public transport for Melksham has improved so much. At long last Melksham is well connected, accessible, and a practical place to live and commute from without needing cars.”
Everything, from the new Discover timetables and routes to the interior and exterior of vehicles, has received a thorough make-over. The modern vehicles have been given a striking new yellow-brown livery on the outside as well as a thorough make-over on the inside, where passengers are welcomed by modern and fresh interiors, new wood-effect flooring and new seating, new USB charging points and free Wi-Fi, so passengers can stay connected on the move.
Andrew Sherrington, First West of England operations director for Bath, Weston super Mare, Wells and Westbury said, “We believe people will like Discover, with its much-improved frequency, and a much more attractive customer experience thanks to the new interior, USB charging points and free Wi-Fi. We hope even more bus passengers are attracted onto our buses.”
The introduction of ‘Discover’ services will be the first phase of a number of improvements to inter-urban services from Bath into parts of Somerset and Wiltshire that First will be making over the coming months.
Considering the changes, passengers are advised to check the new timetable before travelling. Timetables can be downloaded from: www.firstgroup.com/bristol-bath-and-west/routes-and-maps/discover
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