News Releases >

Greens applaud internet bus initiative

A significant step in the right direction

15th March 2008
For immediate release

Screenshot of typical internet display. Click the image to see it in real time (new window)

 
A new initiative that will make it easier to avoid frustrating waits at bus stops has been welcomed by the Green Party in Bristol.

Travellers can now check the internet to see when their bus is actually coming, instead of checking the timetable and hoping for the best. A new website, NextBusBristol ^{[Note 1]}, uses satellite tracking of buses to tell users how long it will be before their next bus reaches the stop of their choice. It is claimed to be accurate to within 20 seconds.

Martin Cottingham, the Greens' Parliamentary candidate for Bristol East, said:

"It's vital that we ease the problems of using buses in Bristol - and without a doubt, the prospect of standing for ages at a bus stop wondering if and when one of First's notoriously unreliable buses might come is a big deterrent. This website is a small but important step forward. It should lead on to passengers getting far better information ^{[Note 2]}, wherever they are, either on-screen or through mobile phones or at the stops themselves."

"Let's hope that the system will be extended quickly to out of town services and those operated by other companies. There are many proven technologies, like this, that can make public transport more attractive - for instance smart card ticketing that can speed up journeys by cutting the delays at bus stops."

"While other towns and cities have been leading the way with this kind of project, sadly Bristol seems too obsessed with costly 'flagship' schemes like bus rapid transit, which are hard to implement and may - like the crazy proposal to send buses down the railway path - actually disadvantage more people than they benefit, and add to traffic at the same time"

ENDS

Notes

1. The NextBusBristol website is at http://www.nextbusbristol.co.uk/


2. Tess Green,of the Bristol South Green Party, has tabled questions for the next council meeting about the programme to expand the system


3. One bus in three doesn't even start its journey within five minutes of the scheduled time. Performance gets even worse during the journey. (Source: Bus Services Background Information - Report among papers for BCC Physical Environment Scrutiny Commission, 31/1/2008, Appendix 2)

Contact:

Martin Cottingham 0117 965 7058 or (mob) 0797 410 9914
Peter Goodwin (Green Party Press Officer) 01275 543280