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08 February 2012
By Stagecoach

One of Sheffield’s most popular bus services has been boosted by five new vehicles costing £600,000 to meet demand from its growing number of users.

The Supertram Link, which connects passengers in Stocksbridge, Deepcar and Oughtibridge with the tram at Middlewood, from where they can travel into the city centre and onwards, is one of Stagecoach Sheffield’s biggest success stories.

The SL1 service, launched in June 2007 to create an integrated link with the tram, has recorded more than 600,000 passenger journeys in the last 12 months – a ten per cent increase.

The five new single decker buses, Alexander Dennis Enviro 200 models, have 37 seats compared to the 27 on the Optare Solos used on this route, providing room for an extra 60 people every hour.

They were unveiled at a special ceremony at the Middlewood Road Park and Ride, in Hillsborough, by Angela Smith, MP for Penistone and Stocksbridge, who welcomed the investment made by Stagecoach to meet passenger demand.

She said: “The Supertram Link is a vibrant reminder of the value of good local bus services which take people where they want to go quickly and easily and it is vital to workers, shoppers and people using the city’s leisure facilities.”

The wheelchair and buggy-friendly buses used on the Supertram Link, which last year was given an overall satisfaction rate of 99 per cent in a customer survey, run every ten minutes Monday to Saturday.

Paul Lynch, Stagecoach Yorkshire’s managing director, said: “Passenger growth on the service has been phenomenal and we are delighted that it is so well used and meets a demand from people living along the route. With just one ticket for both bus and tram, it is certainly a cheaper and more environmentally friendly way than bringing a car into Sheffield.

“The five new buses will enable us to cater for the increasing number of passengers on the route and to continue running the service to high standards of efficiency and comfort.”