Bus routes shake-up on the way

Adam Hewitt • Published 26 Dec 2009 10:00 0 Comments

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IT IS all change on the buses yet again from early next year.

Some of Reading Transport's cuts and changes to its routes were pushed back from September after it was given emergency subsidy cash by Reading Borough Council, and other changes have been avoided thanks to Wokingham Borough Council stepping in to pay Reading Buses and Thames Travel to run services the municipal firm had planned to abandon.

Chief executive James Freeman said: "These changes are an important step towards rationalising the network to bring it into line with the lower level of demand, to make sure we can continue to provide the good quality service."

But other route changes are being pushed through from January 11, including to the 24 through Emmer Green which the residents' association say will leave some current passengers stranded as roads which have had a service for more than 30 years lose it.

Chairwoman Margaret Ormonde said: "Our optimism after the meeting with James Freeman was shortlived. Apparently there is nothing Reading Buses can do to halt the route change of the 24 anti-clockwise on January 11. We have listed our objections to the changes to the council - exclusion from essential services, social isolation for the elderly, reversion to car usage and the potential loss of passengers, because if they don't travel in by bus they wont come home on it."

The 62, 63 and 64 buses between Woodley and Reading will become the new 12, 13, 13a and 14 routes. Thames Travel will also run on the 12 route, which runs from London Road to Woodlands Avenue, Headley Road East and on one-way loop via Mohawk Way and Spitfire Way and back into Reading into Blagrave Street stop FW.

The 13 runs from London Road up Shepherd's Hill to Beechwood Avenue, than in a one-way loop along Butts Hill Road to Tippings Lane and Headley Road East, and into Reading on the same route as the 12 to stop FW. It will run every 30-40 minutes throughout the day Monday-Saturday and hourly on Sunday.

The 14 runs from London Road to The Drive down to Fairwater Drive up to Crockhawmell Road, then a one-way loop via Loddon Bridge Road and Vauxhall Drive and back into Reading to stop FW at the same frequency as the 13.

A new route 19 will link central Reading with the Royal Berkshire Hospital and the university's Whiteknights and Bulmbershe campuses. It will run via Craven Road to Shinfield Road, through the campus to Pepper Lane, up Wilderness Road and Church Road, up Eastcourt Avenue and Culver Lane round to Woodlands Avenue. It then loops round Woodley via Crockhamwell Road, Drovers Way, Loddon Bridge Road, Vauxhall Drive, up to Miles Way then Comet Way up to Hurricane Way. It returns to Woodlands Avenue via Headley Road East and Lytham Road. It will run hourly to Reading and every 30 minutes off-peak round the Woodley loop, but will not return to Reading in the evenings and has no Sunday service.

Other changes from January 11:

- 9 to Shinfield Park will have a revised peak timetable and fewer evening buses.

- N9 extended from Shinfield Park to School Green.

- N64 re-numbered N14 and 64 re-numbered 13a

- 15 will only operate between Reading and The Triangle (stop X), on a new timetable. The last section to Westwood Glen will be transferred to the 33.

- 16 has major timetable changes. Two morning peak-hour outward and two evening inbound journeys, re-numbered 16a, will run via Oxford Road between Kentwood Circle and Purley and vice versa.

- Routes 17, 20, 21, 26 have new timetables but similar frequencies to now

- 22 has a revised timetable and different frequencies. From Caversham Heights one bus per hour will terminate in Central Reading Market Place, one bus per hour will terminate at Foxhill Road and the other bus will continue to Lower Earley.

- 22a is scrapped, 22e from Caversham Heights to central Reading remains

- 23/24 A revised timetable Mondays to Saturdays with frequencies reduced to every 20 minutes. On journeys towards Coley Park, the route in Emmer Green is revised with buses operating from Kiln Road via Peppard Road and Kidmore End Road to Grove Road.

- 27 has an altered route from Nire Road as now but then via Caversham Road and Friar Street to Forbury Road over Reading Bridge to Gosbrook Road and back to Nire Road.

- New 29 service on the reverse loop to the above. Frequency on both will be half-hourly.

- 33 will be same frequency to The Triangle but past it will run via Westwood Road to Pierce's Hill down to Westwood Glen, along Chapel Hill and back up Lower Elmstone Drive every 30 minutes Monday to Saturday and hourly on Sundays and in the evenings.

- 33a same route, every 30 minutes Mondays to Saturdays, no evening/Sunday service.

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