More people waiting for a bus in Brighton and Hove will know exactly when it is going to turn up, thanks to a new wave of electronic arrival boards.
The city council has just invested over £200,000 in electronic real-time signs at 18 locations. These tell passengers how many minutes it will be before their chosen bus arrives.
The new signs will be dotted around the city from Mile Oak shops and Portland Road in the west to North Road in the city centre, Whitehawk Road and Marine Gate in the east and Valley Drive, Withdean in the north.
Additional signs are also being installed at the busy Churchill Square and Old Steine bus stops.
Funding has mainly come from property developers who negotiate contributions with the council planning department to pay for local improvements – called Section 106 agreements.
It is expected the new signs will be working by the end of August. They will complement 180 already operating citywide..
Meanwhile parking restrictions at many bus stops will be beefed up to stop selfish drivers blocking access to buses for people with mobility problems. Clearway markings are proposed for eleven bus stops. These make any driver pulling up in a bus stop liable to a £70 fine. Consultation letters to locals are going out this week.
Chair of the environment, transport and sustainability committee Cllr Gill Mitchell said: “Uncertainty over when your bus might arrive is one thing that can deter people from bus travel. So we’re working hard to overcome this obstacle and give passengers more certainty about their journey. It’s good to see money secured from developers being spent on benefits for local people.
“Cars parked in bus stops mean buses have to stop in the road where some people cannot reach them. So restrictions must be improved to provide equal access to all.”
List of sign locations (street, bus stop, direction)
- Marine Drive – Marine Gate, westbound
- Kingsway – Westbourne Villas, eastbound
- The Drive – Upper Drive, southbound
- Eastbourne Road
- Ditchling Road – St Matthias Church, southbound
- Dyke Road Avenue – Hillbrow, southbound
- Western Road – Clarence Square, westbound
- Portland Road – School Road, westbound
- Mile Oak shops, southbound
- Fleet Street
- Manor Road – Bristol Gardens
- Valley Drive – Whitehorn Drive, southbound
- Old Shoreham Road – Hove Park Villas, westbound and eastbound
- North Road – North Laine
- Whitehawk Road – Findon Road, southbound
- Davigdor Road – Lyon Close, westbound
- Portland Road – Coleman Avenue
List of bus stop clearway locations (street, bus stop, direction)
- Bexhill Road – Balsdean Road southbound and northbound
- Bolney Road – already completed
- Hangleton Way eastbound
- Hodshrove Road
- Poplar Avenue – Sherbourne Road
- Carden Hill – Rotherfield Crescent southbound
- Sherbourne Road – Sherbourne Close southbound
- Hangleton Road – The Twitten northbound and southbound
- West Way Twitten, westbound
