Half hourly bus service to Andover announced by Stagecoach.

Stagecoach have announced that the 76 bus service is to be expanded from April.

As part of the Bus Service Improvement Partnership, Hampshire County Council has allocated £4.2m of government funding to Stagecoach South and two other bus companies to enable them to increase service levels on 15 Hampshire bus routes, which will result in more services being run.

In Overton, this will mean that the 76 bus between Andover, Whitchurch and Basingstoke will soon run every 30 minutes, on Monday-Saturday daytime. At present, only one bus an hour travels to Andover.

Executive member for universal services at Hampshire County Council, Cllr Nick Adams-King has said of the changes “This is a significant boost for the bus network in Hampshire which will help more people to make the choice to leave the car at home and to travel more easily and economically to get to and from work, college, shops or for an evening out which, in turn, will help support the local economy.

“Coupled with the Government’s support in capping single journey fares to £2 a trip means this is a tremendous opportunity for more people to step on board, give bus travel a try and experience the convenience!”

Also, Hampshire County Council has confirmed that there will be additional Bus Service Improvement Plan funding to promote bus travel, in order to encourage more people to take the bus for their everyday journeys.

Image: David Smith