Yorkshire Coast Bus Routes to Benefit from Expansion Cash

Bus services in North Yorkshire are to be expanded after the council received £3.5m from the department of transport.

The one off payment will fund extra services on twenty routes for the next 12 months and will also see a one pound fare cap introduced for those aged under 19.

North Yorkshire Council’s executive member for highways and transport, Cllr Keane Duncan has welcomed the new money.

The council received the money from the Department for Transport’s (DfT) Network North Bus Service Improvement Plan.

The extra money has been allocated to local authorities in the Midlands and the North for 2024/25, following the decision not to proceed with the High Speed 2 (HS2) rail project.

Cllr Keane Duncan explains what the money will do.

North Yorkshire Council has been working with bus operators Transdev, Arriva and Go-Ahead to identify routes which they feel may have commercial prospects if the funds were used to support starting them.

The proposals need to be submitted to the DfT by the end of March. The plans include enhancements to weekday timetables, including improved frequencies and additional early morning, peak time, evening or shopper journeys on a number of routes including

• Service 8 - Scarborough - St Thomas Street - Westborough - Briercliffe - Queen Street
• Service 10 - Scarborough - Scarborough, Hospital - Westborough - Eastfield - Cayton
• Service 13 - Scarborough - Osgodby Hill Top - Cayton Bay Holiday Camp - Eastfield - Cayton - Lebberston - Crows Nest / Flower of May - Blue Dolphin Holiday Village - Gristhorpe - Filey - Muston - Hunmanby - Primrose Valley Holiday Village - Reighton Sands
  Holiday Village - Reighton - Bridlington
• Service 20 - Scarborough - Queen Street - Westborough - Scarborough Rail Station - Evelyn Drive - Stepney Ave
• Service  128 - Scarborough - Crossgates - Seamer Roundabout - East Ayton - West Ayton - Hutton Buscel - Wykeham - Brompton by Sawdon - Snainton - Ebberston - Allerston - Wilton - Thornton le Dale - Pickering - Middleton - Wrelton - Sinnington -Kirkbymoorside - Wombleton - Nawton - Helmsley
• Service 175 - Malton - Swinton - Amotherby - Great Habton - Kirby Misperton - Little Barugh - Great Barugh - Brawby - Salton -
  Normanby - Marton - Pickering
• Service 840/843 Coastliner - Leeds - Seacroft - Tadcaster - Copmanthorpe - York College - York - Heworth - Stockton-on-the-Forest - Barton Hill - Malton - Scagglethorpe - Rillington - Sherburn - Staxton - Seamer - Scarborough - Alpamare Water Park - Eden Camp -
  Flamingo Land - Kirby Misperton - Pickering - Thornton le Dale - Lockton Lane End - Goathland - Sleights - Ruswarp -
  Whitby

Additional services are also planned for Sunday's and Bank Holidays on Service 10 and Service 128.

Additional customer facing staff are also planned for Scarborough bus station.

The commercial director from Transdev, Paul Turner, said:

“We welcome the use of this funding to help support growth of the bus network. If we can prove additional services are popular this may encourage longer-term support to help the network expand further.”

The managing director of Go-Ahead, which owns East Yorkshire buses, Ben Gilligan, also welcomes the funding. He added:

"Buses are an excellent way for North Yorkshire's residents and visitors to get around the county in a sustainable and cost-effective way.”

The Arriva UK bus area director for North East and Yorkshire, Kim Cain, said:

“We look forward to supporting colleagues at the council in identifying how this funding can be best used to help deliver the high-performing and reliable public transport network that North Yorkshire deserves.”

North Yorkshire Council says it is now working closely with City of York Council following the establishment of the York and North Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority (MCA) in February to ensure their BSIP plans align. City of York Council received a £1.15 million BSIP3 allocation, on top of £16 million of original financial support. Future BSIP funding for both authorities will go via the MCA.