As school and college students prepare to return to full-time education across east and central Lancashire, the area’s leading bus operator The Blackburn Bus Company is to step up services on several of its most popular services.
The bus firm says the changes to routes serving Blackburn, Accrington, Clitheroe and Chorley will help to ensure plenty of space is available on board its buses for safe social distancing.
Timetables on the following services will change from this Sunday, 7 March 2021:
- The 1: Blackburn – Darwen – Bolton: Several extra trips will run at busy times on Monday to Friday mornings and afternoons. Special service 701 will also run for student use only from Darwen to Blackburn on Monday to Friday afternoons.
- 6 & 7: Blackburn – Great Harwood – Accrington – Blackburn: Several new journeys will be added at the busiest times on Monday to Friday mornings and afternoon. Meanwhile the dedicated 6B and 7B buses to and from St Wilfrid’s Church of England Academy in Blackburn will resume, with all journeys reserved for students only.
- ValleyLine: Clitheroe – Blackburn – Shadsworth: New Monday to Friday journeys will run at 3.55pm from Blackburn to Clitheroe and 4.48pm from Clitheroe to Blackburn. Special service 722 to Clitheroe Grammar School will be reinstated with all journeys reserved for student travel.
- 24: Blackburn – Feniscowles – Chorley: Some morning journeys are retimed to run slightly earlier.
- The 464: Accrington – Rawtenstall – Bacup – Rochdale: Several additional journeys will be added during the busiest times in the morning and afternoon on Monday to Fridays. Special buses on service 864 serving local schools and colleges will resume, with all journeys reserved for student use only.
The Blackburn Bus Company’s General Manager Tony Fiocca said: “With the return of students to our local schools and colleges, it’s important that we ensure that all our buses remain clean, safe and ready to go as they have been throughout the pandemic, as we ensure we’re there when our customers need us for essential travel.
“Together with the schools and colleges, we’re asking students to use the additional buses set aside for them – the 6B and 7B to and from St Wilfrid’s in Blackburn, the 722 for Clitheroe Grammar School and the 864 for Haslingden High School, All Saints School in Rawtenstall and Whitworth High School. All usual passes will be accepted on these dedicated student buses.”
Full details of all the revised timetables are now available online at: https://www.transdevbus.co.uk/blackburn and on the free to download Transdev Go mobile app.
