After encouraging students to have their say on the University’s bus service, First Bus, YUSU have had a “huge win,” with changes already being actioned following the University’s consultation with First Bus.
Firstly, First Bus have installed USB charging ports, which are located on the back of passenger seats, meaning students can charge their electronic devices while they commute to and from the University.
There will also now be four additional priority seats on both the 66 and 67 buses. The additional seating means there will be a total of 11 priority seats, rising to 15 when wheelchair spaces are not in use, making buses more accessible for passengers with disabilities.
Changes to both the 66 and 67, which are free to board between both Campus West and Campus East, have been put into place.
Both services do require a ticket to be purchased for students wishing to continue their journey into the city centre, where both buses terminate at York Railway Station.
The ‘Bustice’ campaign originated after frustration towards York’s bus service began to surface in 2019. The campaign’s agenda has been to resolve the service’s inefficiencies both for students and the local community.
In 2019, Nouse reported, “The appeal of the #Bustice campaign is widespread, with residents and students alike being affected by ongoing transport issues in York.”
Due to students’ reliance on this service, YUSU have decided to act upon both the negative and the positive feedback that students have provided, with particular interest in resolving student's concerns about the First Bus service. Although YUSU is still working with First Bus to improve its services on Campus, changes have already been made.
Since making changes to the service, First Bus have also agreed with withYUSU to increase the accuracy of the bus GPS systems.
Abbie Lenton, a second-year student at the University, told Nouse that“A lot of the time the buses come too early or too late and so you have to either rush to get on or wait around forages in the cold.” Therefore, better tracking systems and more frequent updates on the bus stop display boards are set to increase accuracy in bus timetabling and service.
Furthermore, Hannah Nimmo reported that YUSU are actively working with First Bus to improve “the regularity of buses so that they show up when they are supposed to.”
“We are trying to work out how to get the message across to students if buses are not going to show up.” Hannah also stated that this concern was exacerbated by the fact that “the need for buses this year, especially, has intensified a lot.”
Further improvements to the FirstBus services on campus are being discussed and include the potential provision of additional bus stop signage and shelters at each bus stop on campus, potentially adding to the student experience. Other matters have been disclosed by students through the open consultation, which has been ongoing since the start of last term (September 2022) which closed Friday 20 January 2023.
