Harrogate Council invests £37,000 in new technology to keep buses running on time 2nd December 2009
1 December 2009
Harrogate Borough Council is helping buses in the Harrogate district to 'run on time' thanks to new technology and a £37,000 investment.
The trial last year on the Knaresborough, Starbeck to Harrogate route used this new technology to give buses more 'green time' at traffic lights if they were running late.
The trial showed significant savings made on journey times with no adverse effect on other traffic.
The council is now going to install the technology at seven additional junctions including Station Parade, West Park and Parliament Street.
This will also help Transdev's flagship 36 service between Ripon, Harrogate and Leeds and will also benefit residents using buses from Jennyfields because much of that route is common with the 36 service.
As Transdev's budgets are limited, the council will also fund the provision of the global positioning system (GPS) technology onboard the buses travelling the routes which will benefit from the pre-emption facility.
This is needed to 'trigger' the extra green time if the bus is running behind schedule.
The equipment is configured to make sure that only buses which are running behind schedule will receive priority.
Councillor Don Mackenzie, Cabinet Member for Transport, has welcomed the use of this new system to increase the attractiveness of public transport.
He said:
"The trial showed improvements by saving as much as five minutes on journey times.
Five minutes is a long time when you are anxious to get to your destination.
As well as improving travel times and allowing buses to adhere to their published timetable, there is also the added bonus of reducing carbon emissions from idling buses."
The funding is being provided via the highway agency area agreement for Harrogate and Knaresborough.
These new measures will meet the objectives of the Local Transport Plan by increasing the attractiveness of public transport.
Nigel Eggleton, Marketing Director for Transdev Harrogate and District, commented :
"We are delighted with this investment by Harrogate Borough Council.
This will complement our recent investment of £150,000 in an additional vehicle for route 36, also targeted at improving the reliability of this very important route.
Hopefully our partnership will continue to bear fruit in the future for the benefit of our passengers."
Councillor Mackenzie added that this project is a partnership between North Yorkshire County Council, the borough council and Transdev Harrogate and District which continues to deliver benefits for bus users as well as addressing the sustainable transport agenda.
FURTHER INFORMATION
Councillor Don Mackenzie is available for comment on 01423 872211 or 07957 304109.
Further technical information is available from John Burton, Head of Highways and Transportation on 01423 556606.