Three new city bus services to be launched

Three new bus services are due to start running after a council set aside £4.7m raised by clean air zone charges.

Serving communities in north, east and south Bristol, the new services will launch on 6 April and will be operated by First Bus.

One of the services will run through the East Bristol Liveable Neighbourhood trial, a scheme which has been met with some concerns by residents.

Bristol City Councillor Ed Plowden said the service will offer "residents a fantastic new resource and hopefully reduce pressure in the area".

"By working towards clean air for Bristol, we have been able to put money aside to invest in sustainable public transport that will be invaluable to the communities they will serve," said Mr Plowden, the chair of the transport and connectivity committee.

The services include:

• Service 16 - East Bristol: From Fishponds to Rupert Street in the city centre, via Kingswood, St George, Barton Hill and Temple Meads.
• Service 36 - South Bristol: From Highridge to St Annes, via Withywood, Hartcliffe, Imperial Park, Knowle and Brislington.
• Service 37 - South to north: From Knowle and Hartcliffe, to Avonmouth and Severnside, via Bishopsworth.

The council said both the service 16 and service 36 will run roughly half hourly every day between 06:00 and 19:00.

The third bus service, between Knowle and Avonmouth, will be tailored, running three return journeys every day, with timings based around shift patterns of workers in Avonmouth and the Severnside business hub.

Councillor Tim Rippington said some areas "have been poorly served by buses until now".

"Every Bristolian should have access to a reliable bus service. Whilst there's a lot more work to do, I hope these routes serve as an important first step towards those ends," he added.

The West of England Mayoral Combined Authority, who is responsible for overseeing and improving bus transport in the region, will manage the contracts for the new routes.

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