Priti launches new local bus route
Witham MP Priti Patel has welcomed the announcement of a new local bus route operated by Hedingham & Chambers which will help deliver better local bus services and connectivity.
The City70 route will operate from Marks Tey and go past the railway station before heading into Colchester city centre via London Road, calling into the Stane Retail Park and stopping at new bus stops that are currently un-served. Parts of Marks Tey were left with only a minimal services following the introduction of an amended First Bus timetable between Colchester and Stanstead Airport, which raised understandable concerns among local residents impacted, and this new route will provide a service into Colchester city centre every 30 minutes between 08:40 and 14:40 Monday to Friday.
The route will be operated in the main by drivers from the Hedingham Omnibus depot in Kelvedon that Priti visited on Friday 5th April, and full details of the route will be published shortly alongside a public advertising campaign.
Since Hedingham registered this new route, Essex County Council have also requested that they look to expand it through a new bus gate and serve a new housing development, something Hedingham will also look to introduce in the near future as well.
Speaking after her visit to the Kelvedon depot Priti said: “It is extremely welcome news that local residents will now be served by a brand-new bus route. This will be a much-needed addition to Hedingham and Chambers existing routes. Local residents and I have expressed our concerns about the lack of accessible routes in parts of Marks Tey, which have been left with only a minimal service following the introduction of the amended First Bus timetable. I am pleased that Hedingham have listened to the concerns raised by me on behalf of residents, and stepped in to deliver this new route.”