New Coniston, Hawkshead and Ambleside evening bus link begins for young people in South Cumbria

On Friday 28 March, Cumbria County Council's South Lakeland Local Committee's newly funded bus service begins, linking Coniston with Ambleside on a Friday and Saturday night. The new service is a ten-week pilot scheme funded by the County Council aiming to enable young people and others from the rural communities to access services using public transport. 

County Councillor Anne Parker, Chair of South lakes Local Committee says, 

"The new service will enable young people to travel to the cinema or to take part in any other social activity and be able to get home afterwards; without having to rely on either parents or taxi's. The service will also link up with the Kendal bus. The need for this initiative was identified through consultation with young people. It was clear that the lack of transport was stopping them being able to travel during the evening and excluding them from leisure activities and other services. 

The scheme will be monitored and evaluated. If enough people use the new service during the ten week pilot, a commercial operator may come forward to run the route on a permanent basis."