WHIPPET Coaches has announced plans to extend the planned bus routes they will run on the Guided Busway to provide an hourly Somersham service. Guided buses from Somersham will join the busway track at the new St Ives Park and Ride before gliding to Cambr

WHIPPET Coaches has announced plans to extend the planned bus routes they will run on the Guided Busway to provide an hourly Somersham service.

Guided buses from Somersham will join the busway track at the new St Ives Park and Ride before gliding to Cambridge. At the moment there is no direct bus service from Somersham to Cambridge and journey times on the busway will be quicker than on conventional buses.

Before Whippet took the decision to offer a busway service from Somersham they were planning to only pick up passengers from St Ives before joining the track.

Cambridgeshire County Councillor Steve Criswell, member for Somersham and Earith, said: "A lot of people I speak to in Somersham were already planning to catch a guided bus from the new St Ives Park and Ride, but picking people up from outside their door will make the journey even easier for them. I would encourage people to make good use of this service and in the future the bus operators may decide to provide a direct link to even more villages. This shows how flexible the busway is as new services have been added even before it is open."

Busway contractors BAM Nuttall are planning to hand over the completed track between St Ives and Cambridge by the end of October. The busway will open to the public within a month of it being handed over after testing, trials and staff training.