To celebrate the ‘Catch The Bus Week’, all three partners of the ‘Better by Bus’ campaign, namely, Arriva, Merseytravel and Stagecoach, have teamed up to offer 200 free bus rides every day from 3 July to 7 July. The partners will be out and about giving advice on planning your journey, guidance on using their mobile apps and to give away free tickets.
Supporters hope that the ‘Catch The Bus Week’ initiative will encourage more people to think about how to travel around Merseyside and to consider catching a bus. To avoid morning traffic jams and paying city rates for parking, you can take a bus instead. Find them from 10am to 4pm, at – William Square in Liverpool on 3 July, Monday; Chapel Street in Southport , on 4 July, Tuesday; Church Square, St Helens, on 5 July, Wednesday; Derby Road, Huyton, on 6 July, Thursday; Catherine Street, Birkenhead, on 7 July, Friday.
Bus lead councillor, Transport Committee of Liverpool City Region, overseeing Merseytravel work, Councillor Ron Abbey, said they wanted to encourage people who don’t catch buses at all, or very rarely, to try it, or to take it more often. ‘Catch The Bus Week’ will help them showcase the benefits, he added. Bus commuters in Liverpool City Region rate it highly and customer satisfaction survey by Transport Focus, the independent transport watchdog, found it at 90% overall, he remarked. He said they want people to think differently on travel and consider all types of journey on a bus, with so many benefits, from free USB charging to free Wi-Fi offered.
The area managing director for Merseyside at Arriva, Howard Farrell, said they want Catch The Bus Week to promote bus travel, with summer holidays approaching and improving weather. The free ticket giveaway is an opportunity to attract people to catch a bus, whether for the little ones’ day out, or for the daily commute in Liverpool City Region, remarked the managing director.
