Pilkington Bus to invest half a million pounds
Accrington-based Pilkington Bus is to invest half a million pounds in new buses and personnel to fulfil a contract recently awarded by Lancashire County Council.
The new contract is worth in the region of £3 million. The new routes began operating in July and are designed to greatly improve transport links around the Ribble Valley, Blackburn and East Lancashire.
The new services are:
- Clitheroe to Chipping (The existing two-hour service will increase in frequency to every hour, 7 days a week including all day on Sunday)
- Blackburn, Mellor
- Blackburn, Mellor, Brockhall
- Blackburn, Mellor, Brockhall, Clitheroe
Alan Pilkington, Pilkington Bus Managing Director, said: “We’re proud to be offering this new service to the public. It’s a vote of confidence from Lancashire County Council (LCC). We’ve been partnering with LCC since 1979 and we’ve come to be a preferred supplier because we always provide a 100% service.”
The current health crisis has caused challenges for the company in terms of social distancing and the temporary suspension of school run services. Mr Pilkington explained: “We are doing everything we can to keep the public safe. That’s why we’ve been taking extra measures to ensure the cleanliness of our vehicles and we’re making sure the public comply with the government’s obligatory face masks on public transport.”
Local Rochdale-based bus manufacturer, Mellor, supplied two of its low-floor Stratas as part of the the vehicle deliveries.
Area Sales Manager at Mellor, Jane Dransfield, said: “We’re delighted to be supporting Pilkington Bus and other local bus operators as they recover from extremely challenging circumstances.
“Our size appropriate bus range provides the ideal solution for local bus operators, especially on rural routes, where smaller capacity vehicles provide the flexibility and cost-effectiveness to ensure routes remain viable and frequencies are maintained.
“It’s a win-win solution for bus operators and their passengers.”