On-demand bus service zones to be extended

An on-demand bus service is being extended to include a wider area.

The Shrewsbury service operates like a taxi, so people can book a bus either through an app, or by calling the council.

The scheme, which started on 1 December 2023, had gone from "strength to strength", with about 14,500 journeys made in 2024, deputy council leader councillor Ian Nellins said

Zones into the south of the town are being introduced on 31 January with roadshows being held on the 23rd at Shrewsbury Business Park and on 25th at Kingston Drive and Weir Hill to introduce the service.

"These are the areas where patronage wasn't great and the service providers at the time weren't making any money out of it, and that's why the council's been able to step in," he said.

Nellins said the authority would like to extend the service to more market towns, such as Market Drayton, where services were not as good as it would like.

He said people had gone away from using public transport since the coronavirus pandemic and this was a way to encourage them to come back.

The busiest times were currently commuter hours, first thing in the morning and between 16:00 GMT and 18:00 GMT in the evening, he said.

People did not only just want to go the shops, he added, they also wanted to go to rural areas for walks and to visit local pubs.

"There's a lot of reasons why people could utilise the services and clearly we want to encourage people to use it," he said.

"It's taking people out of their cars, it's better for the environment, and it's better for everybody."

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