| Hampshire
County Council has invested in three yellow school buses
operating a series of journeys in the Basingstoke area.
Each bus covers two school runs in the morning and two
in the evening. Schools involved in the scheme are Aldworth
Science College, and its feeder primary schools (Park
View Infant and Junior Schools, and Kempshott Infant and
Junior Schools).They will be used for pupils who typically
have to travel between one and three miles to school.
During the school day, the buses will be used by young
people for other purposes such as school trips.
The
American style yellow buses will have regular enhanced
CRB-checked drivers and will carry a striking livery.
The brand new vehicles are accessible and will be fitted
with seat belts and CCTV. Good communications mean that
parents agree to contact a dedicated telephone number
if their child is unable to travel, and that the buses
are in contact with a central control point. A standard
fare is charged for pupils using the yellow bus services.
Walking
and cycling Initiative
In
partnership with Rushmoor Borough Council, Hampshire County
Council will be setting up a walking/cycling initiative
in the Farnborough area.
Cycle
training will be on offer under this initiative, alongside
an awareness programme for pupils and parents. We will
investigate providing secure cycle storage and other infrastructure,
together with measures to encourage and reward more travel
to school on foot or bicycle.
A
series of meetings will be arranged to involve parents
and pupils before launching the pilot on 21 May which
is Walk to School Week.
Home
to school travel services
Hampshire
County Council currently provide a large number of Home
to School Transport Services (HTST) or ‘School Special’
where there are groups of children entitled to transport.
The aim of this new project is to open up the service
to non-entitled children at a small cost, to encourage
greater use of the services. Opportunities to better cater
for the extended school day, after-school activities and
breakfast or homework clubs will be investigated. A travel
club is also being considered, offering travel to the
participating schools at a standard fare with incentives
and promotions for regular users. This pilot will take
place in the Waterside area.
Scheduled
bus services
This
initiative aims to encourage greater use of local buses
for journeys to school in the Eastleigh area. The project
will involve ensuring that the bus timetables suit school
start and finish times where possible, and that there
are enough seats available at the right time. Providing
information and promoting the services available will
feature highly in this pilot, which will offer personalised
travel planning, a web-based journey planner, and incentives
for pupils who switch to the bus on a regular basis.
Local
Transport Plan
All
four of these initiatives fit in with the Local Transport
Plan’s aim to ‘Reduce, Manage and Invest’.
The introduction of the walking/cycling initiative aims
to help reduce congestion on the roads. The home to school
transport services in Basingstoke together with the scheduled
services in Eastleigh aim to manage and make best use
of the existing services that are on offer. Finally the
yellow bus scheme is an opportunity for the County Council
to trial a dedicated bespoke bus service to help with
the problem of transport to school.
Cllr
Thornber said "I'm very excited that we are
working with schools, pupils and parents on these innovative
pilot schemes. Through providing a better alternative
for the school run, our overall aim is for children to
be able to travel to school safely and conveniently, while
creating a better environment and that's got to be good
news for everyone."
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