Reading Buses have announced today that those travelling from north of the Thames into town will be able to make the return journey for £1.

Extra buses will also be put on to help residents travel while the 92-year-old bridge is closed as part of the on-going repairs, starting May 18.

Those using the pink services that cross the river will be able to travel from Gosbrook Road and Church Street/Caversham High Street, into town and back for the reduced price of £1.

Normal return prices into town are £1.20 each way.

Martijn Gilbert, Reading Buses CEO, said: “We recognise that the total closure is essential for works to strengthen the 92-year-old bridge and are sure that the long term benefits will far outway the short term disruption.

“There will inevitably be an increase in traffic due to one route being closed and this may flow into other nearby routes in the town that don’t cross the river. It will be difficult to predict the exact impact until the works start, but we’ll be doing all we can to keep our buses on time.

“There will be 11 buses an hour on pink routes between Caversham High Street and Reading Town Centre, each with the potential to take up to 70 cars off the road.

“If all 11 buses an hour were full of car drivers who decided not to drive we could save over two miles of road space during a very congested period. Our buses will operate at a ‘turn up and go’ style frequency so passengers will not have to worry about timetables,”

The pink route buses – numbers 22, 23, 24, 25 and 27/29 – link Caversham and Emmer Green to the town’s main railway station and Friar Street.

The closure of Reading Bridge is expected to last two weeks and will reduce the crossing to a single lane for pedestrians and cyclists with all other road traffic being pushed onto the nearby Caversham Bridge.