The University of Glamorgan’s Bwcabus project scooped top honours in the National Transport Times Awards in Manchester last week.
The project won the Most Innovative Transport Project category (sponsored by Stagecoach), beating off a strong field of national and regional initiatives from across the UK that included:
- Highways Agency – M42 Junction 5 Southbound Through Junction Running Project
- First Transpennine Express – Driving Fuel Efficiency
- Road Safety Foundation – GB EuroRAP Risk Mapping and Performance Tracking 2009
- Bournemouth Borough Council- Bournemouth Camera Car
- Southeastern – Previewing High Speed
- London Underground – Computerised Track Access Control
- JMP on behalf of Dundee City Council – Dundee Travel ActiveChiltern Railways – Evergreen
- London Borough of Islington – Vouchers for Permits
Launched in August 2009, Bwcabus is an on-demand local bus service tailored to the needs of passengers in Teifi Valley’s rural villages by delivering them to local towns, villages or hubs along the main route of the 460 bus service from Carmarthen to Cardigan. Passengers pre-book feeder buses into the main route, but can also travel within the Bwcabus area. The innovation is not just high technology. It also involves a different approach to service provision, including brand new vehicles, guaranteed connections and greater choice of travel times.
The Bwcabus concept was developed by the Wales Transport Research Centre at the University of Glamorgan. The delivery of this project has been a model for successful partnership between the WTRC, Carmarthenshire County Council, Ceredigion County Council, Traveline Cymru and private bus operator Richards Brothers.
Professor Stuart Cole said, “I am of course delighted that Bwcabus has won this very prestigious award and against very tough competition from respected UK transport colleagues. The Bwcabus radical innovation came from a simple question posed to the Wales Transport Research Centre by the Welsh Government – how do we provide a high quality bus service for rural areas where the services are in decline? That was five years ago.
Developing the sophisticated system took time but it worked well from the start and is now almost one year old (24 August) it has increased demand on the Bwcabus network by 45%. This, at a time where rural patronage is generally falling.
The University of Glamorgan has shown how industry, government and academia can work together to produce and implement radical ideas which are workable solutions. From concept to innovative, practical solutions.”
The success of the project has meant that early discussions have taken place with the Assembly on developing Bwcabus 2 and research is being undertaken over the summer to identify opportunities for expanding the service.
The Bwcabus project was funded by the Welsh Government, the European Convergence Fund and Carmarthenshire County Council.
