Oxford PickMeUp to expand

Oxford Bus Company’s on-demand ride-sharing service is to expand its zone into Horspath next year.

The app-based PickMeUp service will serve Horspath from 5 January due to popular demand and thanks to funding from Horspath Parish Council. It will serve the village on a six-month pilot scheme, returning public transport to Horspath for the first time since bus services were withdrawn following Oxfordshire County Council subsidy cuts in 2016.

Additionally, Oxford Bus Company is to suspend its PickMeUp service to Jericho from 5 January after the prolonged Walton Street road closure made continuing to provide services to the area impractical.

PickMeUp operates between 6am and 11pm Monday to Friday, between 7am and midnight on Saturday and 9am to 9pm on Sundays, with an average response time of ten to 15 minutes.

Phil Southall, Managing Director of Oxford Bus Company said: “It is great news to be extending the PickMeUp zone to serve the Horspath community. It will provide vital connectivity for people living and working in Horspath. This is as a direct result of Horspath Parish Council working in partnership with us to introduce the service on a trial basis. Such support from other key stakeholders remains crucial to help the service grow as we enter the final phase of the pilot scheme in 2020.”