A student-only bus service is being extended to reduce pressure on public transport and support social distancing following discussions between the City Council, both universities and Notts Police.
The Hopper service from the University of Nottingham’s Jubilee campus runs every 30 minutes Monday to Friday and will now make additional stops in the city centre at Faraday Road, the Savoy Cinema, Canning Circus and Wollaton Street.
Student buses to and from the city to the University of Nottingham’s Sutton Bonington campus will now also stop at the Clifton campus of Nottingham Trent University.
The City Council’s Deputy Leader, Councillor Sally Longford, said: “We’ve been working closely with both universities and Notts Police during the Covid pandemic and one of the issues discussed has been dedicated student transport.
“It’s really positive that this has led to the Hopper service being extended which will help give students more options for getting in and out of the city, taking pressure off public transport services.
Councillor Adele Williams, the Council’s Portfolio Holder for Public Transport said: “We’re lucky to have such an extensive public transport network in the city and it has played a vital role in keeping Nottingham moving during the current pandemic.
“NET trams, Nottingham City Transport and other transport providers have been working hard to ensure services are safe for customers. Government guidance during the new national lockdown which started today is to avoid travel unless essential and work from home if you can but buses and trams will continue to be essential for key workers, as they were in the first lockdown, therefore it’s important we take any steps we can to support social distancing.”
Dr Paul Greatrix, Registrar at the University of Nottingham, said: “We are working closely with our students to ensure they follow social distancing guidelines at all times – both on and off campus – and behave as responsible members of the communities of which they are a part.
“The health, safety and wellbeing of our university community continues to be our priority and the extended Hopper bus service is one of a series of measures, including increased investment in security and community protection patrols, we have introduced as part of this.”
Chief Inspector Riz Khan, of Nottinghamshire Police, said: “We welcome the extension of the student Hopper bus service as this will relieve social distancing related pressure on public transport in and out of the city.
“Nottinghamshire Police will continue to support our partners in Nottingham City Council, Nottingham City Transport, Nottingham Express Transit and both universities to ensure that the city centre is as safe as possible, as we have done throughout the pandemic.”