What’s you views on public transport in Tenby?

That’s the question being asked by Tenby Civic Society.

At a recent committee meeting, members discussed the provision of public transport in the area and how services could be improved.

The society would now like to seek your views on the ideas detailed below and to ask for any other suggestions you may have on how to improve our public transport network.

The society then plans to take up the various suggestions with our elected representatives and Pembrokeshire County Council.

The following ideas were discussed:

1. The first suggestion was to extend the hourly T5 TrawsCymru Aberystwyth to Haverfordwest bus service to Tenby thus creating an hourly Aberystwyth to Tenby express bus service. This would see improved journey times and make travel from Tenby as far north as Bangor possible with only one change of bus at Aberystwyth. It would also restore a limited Sunday bus service to the area as the T5 service operates seven days a week. It was also noted that the Welsh Assembly Government are currently trialling free travel on the TrawsCymru network for everybody on Saturday and Sundays. This service could be a straight replacement for the existing 381 Haverfordwest to Tenby service or an additional fast service.

2. Currently, the 381 bus service from Tenby to Haverfordwest arrives five minutes after the T5 service to Aberystwyth has departed, thus resulting in a 55 minute delay. An immediate improvement could be achieved by retiming the existing 381 services to depart Tenby at 25 minutes past the hour instead of 40 minutes past the hour and hence provide a connection into the T5 Aberystwyth service. The T5 service serves Fishguard, Cardigan, New Quay, Aberaeron and Aberystwyth.

3. Reinstate the Tenby town bus service that was withdrawn when Silcox Coaches ceased to operate. Silcox operated this service as a commercial service without any subsidy. However, no operator has come forward to run the service on that basis. Pembrokeshire County Council should therefore consider funding a subsidised Tenby town service. This service was well-patronised by the town’s senior citizens.

4. Two suggestions were made concerning improving the local train service. The first was to examine the possibility of an additional late night service to Tenby and Pembroke Dock. Currently, the last departure from Paddington to connect to Tenby is 1645 hours. By operating an additional connecting service from Whitland to Pembroke Dock using the existing rolling stock, it would be possible to depart London as late as 1915 hours. This could be achieved by terminating the 2228 hours train from Pembroke Dock to Carmarthen at Whitland and operating a new service from Whitland (departing at 2340 hours) to Tenby and Pembroke Dock. This could also provide a much-improved connection into the Irish Ferries sailing from Pembroke Dock.

5. A further suggestion was to extend the concessionary travel pass (bus pass) scheme to include the Pembroke Dock to Whitland train services with travel allowed as far as Carmarthen. Arriva Trains Wales currently allows free travel to holders of concessionary travel passes (bus pass) on the lines between Swansea and Shrewsbury (Heart of Wales), Machynlleth to Pwllheli (Cambrian Coast Line) and Llandudno to Blaenau Ffestiniog. Free travel is allowed from October 1 to March 31. The benefits of extending this scheme to the Pembroke Dock to Whitland line would be to increase passenger numbers on an underused line during the winter period and the reintroduction of a direct service for concessionary travel pass holders to Carmarthen following the withdrawal of the direct bus service by the previous bus operator.

Tenby Civic Society would welcome any views on the suggestions or any other ideas to improve the public transport network.

Please address any comments to Tenby Civic Society and drop them into the town clerk’s office in the De Valence Pavilion, Upper Frog Street, Tenby.