Man describes his hour-long bus nightmare as new timetables still missing from stops

Major changes to bus timetables and routes in the West of England came into effect on April 2 but the information is still not available at bus stops. Boards at bus stops were removed following service changes.

Travel West has introduced temporary displays which notify passengers that ‘bus services are changing across the region’. Posters direct passengers to a website link and provide them with a QR code where details of the changes can be viewed.

For passengers who do not have smartphones, are not confident using QR codes or simply do not have internet data on their mobile phones, it is not possible to view the revised timetables. Others who are unaware of route changes or services that have recently been withdrawn could find themselves at the wrong bus stop or waiting for a bus service that simply does not exist anymore.

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James, who travelled by bus to Bristol to Wells on Good Friday had checked his return journey online and waited patiently for over an hour for the 376, which never arrived. His bus stop on Wine Street in central Bristol displayed no information about the route changes impacting this hourly service and the digital display screens were not in use.

When his bus failed to show up, he decided to head over to Bristol Bus station. After the bus finally arrived, he discovered that the 376 no longer stopped at the bus stop where he had been previously waiting for over an hour. James, who has travelled around the UK and Europe said that buses in the West of England were the “worst” he had ever experienced.

(Yvonne Deeney)

The temporary displays installed by the West of England Combined Authority (WECA) state: “We are working as fast as possible to update the timetable information at this bus stop.” But ten days after the changes were implemented there are still no new timetables at bus stops.

First Bus and West of England Combined Authority have been approached for comment.

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