Swindon bus service problems discussed at summit

Stagecoach and Swindon's Bus Company face increasing fuel costs, coupled with passenger numbers running at below 70 per cent normal levels pre-pandemic and the cost-of-living crisis.

In turn, members of the public complained of less frequent and unreliable services, longer journey times and buses not going to the places they want to travel to.

The Number 10 bus is currently the subject of a petition from locals urging Stagecoach to make changes (Image: Newsquest)

To try and tackle these issues, representatives from both Stagecoach and Swindon's Bus Company, Conservative and Labour councillors including council leader David Renard, MP Robert Buckland and Labour parliamentary candidate Heidi Alexander met passengers on Friday, January 13, to discuss the next steps.

Lydiard and Freshbrook councillor Sean Wilson said a number of issues were discussed. 

This included the No 10 bus, for which he handed over his petition, the state of the current bus station, scheduling services for pupils at Commonweal School on the number 22 route, and major congestion on Corporation Street.

He said: "It was extremely useful to meet the managers of local bus services along with bus users and other councillors."

Councillor Sean Wilson handed Stagecoach West's managing director, Rachel Geliamassi, the petition over the Number 10 bus at the recent Swindon bus summit (Image: Sean Wilson)

Bailey Adams, who is in his final year of A-levels at New College and lives in Wroughton, discussed his own troubles as well. 

He said: "I use the Stagecoach 9 and 49 to get into town from Wroughton and then buses onwards to New College. The Stagecoach buses are frequently late and sometimes don't turn up at all.

"This has a detrimental effect on my own studies and those of other students. I am often late for classes or sometimes don't arrive until the class has ended. With my A-levels fast approaching this is very worrying."

The bus companies say they had listened to these concerns and will be looking to implement changes based on that feedback. 

Swindon’s Bus Company managing director Andrew Wickham said: "We enjoyed constructive discussions with everyone there - all of whom regard the successful future of bus travel in Swindon as a top priority. 

“I’d like to thank all those who made a contribution. The feedback we received was invaluable, and we will put it to good use as we continue to look for ways to improve our services over the coming months.

“It is imperative that we continue to work together to ensure the town has a comprehensive bus network - not only to help bring communities together and drive economic prosperity but also to lower congestion, and improve air quality."

The Swindon bus summit underway (Image: Heidi Alexander)

Rachel Geliamassi, managing director for Stagecoach West, added: “I’m really pleased with the discussions regarding the bus network in Swindon and how we can work together to protect its future.  

“I was encouraged by the acknowledgement that it is a shared task and that we need to demonstrate to our communities that we are taking positive steps in an aligned way; the summit being an example of this." 

But others, like Ms Alexander, said that while it was clear that the bus companies in Swindon did want to work in partnership with the council to improve services, it would ultimately come down to money. 

"Ambition alone isn’t enough - so much of this will come down to how much money is available to invest and the outlook is pretty bleak," she said. 

"At the end of the day, Conservative politicians - both nationally and locally - have to decide whether they are willing to put their money where their mouth is and invest in the bus network or whether they are content for it to wither on the vine."