Free wifi for Cheshire’s bus passengers

Free wifi and charging sockets are turning Cheshire East’s mobile and tablet generation into bus travellers.

That’s the claim from Transport Service Solutions, Cheshire East Council’s wholly-owned company that manages public transport.

TSS is working with bus companies, schools and local organisations to provide more opportunities for bus travel. It is also backing Catch the Bus Week 2015 – which starts on Monday (June 29) – a nationwide campaign aimed at increasing awareness of the benefits of taking the bus.

TSS recently helped launch bus company GHA’s upgraded Gold 88 and 42 services and their new Congleton ‘Beartown’ buses which serve the 90, 91 and 92 circular routes.

Arriva has also introduced its new ‘Sapphire’ service on the 38 route between Crewe and Macclesfield.

Councillor Gail Wait, chair of TSS, said: “It is great to see standards improving to help more people feel comfortable using buses as a greener alternative to cars.

“We hope the investment being made to vehicles and the introduction of new services such as free on-board wifi and power sockets for charging laptops, tablets and mobile phones will see more people catching the bus.”

TSS manages the provision of home-to-school transport for more than 4,500 children, supports 20 school crossing patrols, issues more than 64,000 concessionary passes per year, maintains 1,483 bus stops and shelters across Cheshire East, updates 1,170 bus timetable displays and manages 602 transport contracts yearly to help people get to work and education.

In the UK, more people travel to work by bus than all other forms of public transport combined. There are 2.5 million bus commuters, and another one million people use buses as a back up.