Electric buses are being introduced on Nottingham’s Park & Ride bus services on Monday (30 January) – creating the UK’s first all-electric Park and Ride service.
From Monday 30 January, a new Centrelink Park and Ride service will run from the Queens Drive Park & Ride Ecohub to Meadows Way, Nottingham Station, Broadmarsh Bus Station, Old Market Square and the city centre, terminating at Victoria Bus Station.
This service will be operated with 13 new ultra-modern low emission electric buses, and will offer the connection to Queens Drive Park & Ride Ecohub previously provided by the Citylink 1 which the new service replaces.
Parts of the Citylink 1 route not covered by the new Centrelink service will be picked up by the introduction of a new Nottingham City Transport Navy Line 49 service, which will also replaces NCT’s existing W4 service and serve the stops along Queens Drive. It will run between the Boots Factory, Thane Road, Electric Avenue, Queens Drive, NG2 Business Park, Nottingham Station and the city centre. It will terminate with other Navy Line buses in the Old Market Square on Beastmarket Hill. Buses will also stop on Maid Marian Way and at Broadmarsh.
Existing stops on Fletcher Gate, George Street, Elite and Mount Street will no longer be served. It will run up to every 15 minutes Monday to Friday (6am to 6.30pm) and will continue to have early morning and evening journeys to cater for shift patterns along the route, especially at Boots Factory. On Saturdays and Bank Holiday Mondays, there will be five journeys in each direction which will run at similar times to the current W4.
For Experian and Electric Avenue, Nottingham City Transport will run more of their Navy 48 buses along the 48A route to provide up to ten buses per hour to Nottingham Station and the city centre.
Citylink 2 – the Park & Ride service operated from Nottingham Racecourse – will also be replaced at the end of January by the new Ecolink Park and Ride service which will run on part of the new Eco Expressway. It will operate from the city centre, Lower Parliament Street, Daleside Road, Racecourse Park & Ride site, Colwick Industrial Estate and Victoria Park. The new improved timetable of Ecolink will see it operate every 15 minutes and it will now also pass by BioCity on Pennyfoot Street in both directions, with the National Ice Arena now being served with a new stop on Bellar Gate.
Centrelink and Ecolink services will be operated by Nottingham Community Transport on behalf of Nottingham City Council.
There will be a change of fare structure as the Eco Link will now be £1 for Robin Hood PAYG customers and £1.10 for cash. The Centrelink will still be free around the city but there will now be a charge from Queens Dive Park & Ride of £1 for Robin Hood PAYG and £1.10 for cash payments for single trips. For more information visit www.nottinghamcity.gov.uk/citylinkchanges.
Councillor Nick McDonald, Portfolio Holder for Business, Growth and Transport at Nottingham City Council, said: “The new Centrelink Park & Ride service will provide a more direct link to the city centre for commuters and shoppers who park at this site, while also maintaining the existing connections to the city’s train station and bus stations. The introduction of new electric buses to this service and the Ecolink Park and Ride Service will help to improve the city’s air quality, reduce carbon emissions and support the financial sustainability of both services through reduced fuel costs.
“The £90,000 per year saved through this move will enable us to maintain local community bus services at a reduced cost that provide vital links to our residents including the elderly and those with mobility issues.”
Ian Combellack, General Manager of Nottingham Community Transport, said: “I am really proud that Nottingham Community Transport will be running this service for the City Council. We have a lot of experience of providing electric bus services and the new all-electric buses are top quality. They go further per electric charge and are more economical than the previous buses used on the Centrelink service. They are also more environmentally friendly, so we are playing our part in making the city’s air quality better.”
For more information about the Centrelink and EcoLink service please contact Telephone: 0115 876 4665 Email: enquiries@ct4nottingham.co.uk
Website: www.ct4nottingham.co.uk