Gloucestershire County Council has announced the introduction of a new bus service in the Cheltenham and Bishops Cleeve areas.

This is the second phase of wide-ranging bus service improvements being made for the benefit of communities after the county council was awarded more than £4.4 million by the Department for Transport over two years.

The Bus Service Improvement Plan Plus (BSIP+) funding amounting to £2,209,623 was allocated to improve bus services in the county during 2023/24 and an anticipated further £2,209,623 will be given for 2024/25.

Starting on Monday 19 February, Cheltenham area residents will benefit from the introduction of a new hourly bus service between the Bishops Cleeve area and Cheltenham town Centre, which will reinstate a bus service to the Woodmancote area, also to the St Pauls, Rowanfield and wider west Cheltenham areas.

The new service R will be operated by Pulham's Coaches and will also provide new journey opportunities from these areas to the Kingsditch retail and commercial area, from around 6am to 8pm on Mondays to Saturdays. 

Cllr Philip Robinson, cabinet member with responsibility for buses at Gloucestershire County Council, said: "I'm pleased to see this new route can be provided thanks to the funding we have received from the Department for Transport. This new service will help provide a very useful replacement local bus service for the Rowanfield, St Marks and Woodmancote areas.

"This is the second phase of a larger programme of bus service improvements coming to many parts of Gloucestershire, continuing our commitment to improving and supporting the many bus services we have in the county."

Luke Marion, managing director of Pulhams Coaches, said: "This is excellent news for local bus users and for the various communities on the route.

"It will help more people get out and about, travel in a sustainable way to their place of work or education and support the local economy.

"We're pleased that Gloucestershire County Council has awarded this tender to Pulhams. It is a positive step in achieving our strategic ambitions of developing local bus services across Gloucestershire to benefit local residents."