Further minor improvements to the bus services from Sunday 3 September

Following the changes to local bus services in May 2023, which were funded through the Bus Service Improvement Plan (BSIP), North East Lincolnshire Council and its delivery partner, Equans, consulted with local bus users in July 2023 for feedback on these changes. The feedback provided from this has helped to shape further improvements which will be made from Sunday 3 September 2023.

Below are the minor changes to the Stagecoach bus service which will commence from Sunday 3 September:

• The 3 and 4 service times will be amended to provide a more even frequency throughout the day alongside the 9/10 services between Cleethorpes and Grimsby.
• The 5 service will be amended to ensure a 15-minute frequency is maintained in both directions between Willows Shops and Grimsby Town Centre. An additional journey in the morning is added to help address the issue with connections between service 5 and 10 in the early morning. Evening times will be changed by five minutes to allow better connections with other services, particularly from Diana, Princess of Wales Hospital.
• The 6 service will be amended to improve the punctuality of the services. Improvements will also be made to the Saturday afternoon timetable with journeys consistently extending to Cleethorpes all day.
• The 7 service will operate via Belvoir Road to the Tesco layby on Humberston Road and will then return to Grimsby Town Centre via Taylors Avenue, Middlethorpe Road, Brian Avenue, Warwick Road and Curzon Avenue, to provide a two-way service to Hewitts Circus Tesco. Two additional journeys have been added to the 7 service from Grimsby Town Centre, Monday to Friday, at 3.40pm and 4.40pm.
• The 8 service times will be amended to provide a more reliable service throughout the journey up to Cleethorpes Pier.
• The 9/10 service revised evening schedule will extend the service to Hewitts Circus, providing a consistent service all day and providing more buses running into Cleethorpes and Humberston.

Please remember to check the new bus timetables before travelling by visiting stagecoachbus.com/timetables.

These changes are funded from the Department for Transport as part of the Bus Service Improvement Plan awarded funding of £4.7m.

Roads Minister, Richard Holden, said: “People up and down the country deserve a modern, reliable, and affordable public transport system. That is why we have provided North East Lincolnshire with almost £5 million to boost its bus services.

“Supporting the Council and the local bus operator Stagecoach with improving the reliability, punctuality and frequency of local services is fantastic for local residents, who will now be able to get to work, attend medical appointments and visit loved ones more easily.”

Councillor Stewart Swinburn, portfolio holder for environment and transport at North East Lincolnshire Council, said: “Residents in North East Lincolnshire rely on buses for their essential travel, particularly students, the elderly and disabled, therefore it is vital that our bus services provide a reliable and flexible service to ensure people can get to where they need to be, like doctor appointments and college classes. Choosing to travel by bus is also more sustainable and bus users will be doing their bit for the environment by ditching the car and reducing their carbon footprint. We believe these new proposed changes will help to fulfil this and we look forward to seeing passenger numbers grow.”

Jonathan Ford, senior transport officer at Equans, added: “We are continually making improvements to the bus services with aims to ensure residents needs are met where possible. These new improvements will provide a better, flexible and reliable service to many and we hope to see passenger numbers grow to pre-pandemic levels from this.”

Bus service event in Grimsby

North East Lincolnshire Council, its delivery partner Equans and Stagecoach East Midlands, will be holding a public engagement event between 10am and 2pm on Wednesday 30 August at Grimsby Bull Ring.

This event provides an opportunity to ask questions about the revised timetables. Leaflets and printed copies of the timetables will be available for you to take away.

There will also be an opportunity for you to complete the BSIP survey at the event. The survey is to refresh the current BSIP priorities which were last updated in 2021 to ensure we are addressing the current issues and barriers that are most important to the community.