A BUS route set to be scrapped in Reading has been saved after all, following an intervention by Reading Borough Council.
Reading Buses announced last month that, among a slew of routine updates to other services, the Pink 22 bus would no longer run between Reading and Caversham Heights.
The announcement sparked confusion and indignation from residentsin the area, which came to a head in a council meeting last Monday (July 6).
Now Reading Borough Council has confirmed that it has stepped in to keep the route operating.
Councillors have negotiated a deal with Reading Buses that they say will allow the service to remain, instead of going ahead with the cancellation, which was due to go into effect on Monday.
In the deal, the council will provide a one-off capital grant to Reading Buses to purchase a new electric bus which they say, alongside the existing Zero Emission Bus Regional Area (ZEBRA) funding grant from the government, will allow the service to remain.
Importantly however, both the Council and Reading Buses are urging residents to make good use of the service for it to be able to continue to run in the future.
Reading Buses has run the pink 22 service at a significant loss since the pandemic, with passenger numbers down 50%.
The closure of Kidmore Road by Thames Water has additionally had an impact on patronage and the bus company needs people to return to the service.
A fall in the price of purchasing electric buses means funding already secured by the Council through a successful ZEBRA bid to the government can be stretched further to enable the purchase of an additional vehicle.
With the new electric bus not available until spring 2027, however, the council has reached agreement with Reading Buses to operate an interim service from next week to ensure continuation of service for passengers.
A revised timetable – every 50 minutes during the peak and 45 minutes during the off peak, compared to 30 minutes during the peak and 60 minutes during the off peak at present – has been put in place.
The provision of a new electric bus on the pink 22 to Caversham Heights, combined with timetable changes, will reduce operating costs for Reading Buses and help it to continue to afford to run the service.
Councillor John Ennis, Reading Council’s Lead for Transport, said: “From the outset the Council has been exploring every possible option to enable the pink 22 to continue to serve passengers. I’m pleased a solution has now been found.
“I had requested that Council officers think outside the box and consider innovative and novel ways in which this could be achieved.
“Given that that only a commercially viable solution would enable the route to run, that was a far from easy task, but they have worked behind the scenes to come up with a solution which does exactly that, which I’m sure the community appreciate.
“By making use of the existing bus grant from Government we have been able to save the service, however it’s really important to emphasise that this is a one-off grant to purchase a new electric bus, and the interim Council funding to support the service until the new bus is delivered next Spring is temporary and does not involve on-going Council subsidy.
“The Pink 22 will only be viable in the long-term if residents make better use of it. I urge residents in Caversham Heights to leave the car at home where possible and to hop on their community bus for trips into the town centre.
“That is the only way to safeguard this valuable route in the future.
“In the meantime, I’d like to thank everybody who took the time to make their views heard and Reading Buses for arriving at a solution.”
Robert Williams, Reading Buses Chief Executive Officer, said: “We are pleased to have found this solution to ensure that the Pink 22 to Caversham Heights can continue to run following substantial declines in patronage over the last few years.
“Our hope is that the new electric bus will provide an additional incentive for residents to give the service a try, as the service is ultimately only justifiable if a larger proportion of the community use it than just those who have no alternative.
“We also intend to continue conversations from the public meeting about how the route could be amended in the future.”
