Devon County Council and Stagecoach South West launch brand new night buses across Exeter

New Night Buses will operate on four of the city’s popular services

Stagecoach South West and Devon County Council have announced a partnership to launch four new night buses services on Friday and Saturday nights, connecting residential fringe areas to Exeter city centre from April 15th 2022.

As pandemic restrictions have been lifted the Devon County Council public transport team and local bus operator Stagecoach South West have forged a partnership to connect residential areas of Exeter to evenings out in the city centre. Exeter city centre has a variety of restaurants and leisure facilities open until late, by providing an affordable service to get people home, the partnership hopes to boost city centre economy but more importantly keep residents safe after their evening out.

From the 15th April night buses will be introduced to popular corridors across the city, keeping residents connected to places of work and evenings out.  Service will run hourly in each direction on Friday and Saturdays, to provide additional buses after the usual evening schedule from midnight right through until 4am. From the 15th April night service will be launched across the following routes:

• Route A connecting Alphington with Thornpark Rise via the City Centre.
• Routes E1/E2 connecting Exwick with the City Centre via the RD&E Hospital.
• Routes I/J connecting Whipton with Countess Wear via the City Centre.
• Route L connecting Pinhoe with the City Centre.

In additional to four extra trips on route E1/E2, the night journeys will also be re routed to serve the RD&E hospital from 2357, offering a late night connection for hospital staff.

Stagecoach South West Managing Director Mike Watson said ‘More people are now venturing out, with restrictions having been in place to a varying degree over the last two years. We’re all keen to get back to meeting up with friends and family, and enjoying the range of eateries and bars our city has on offer. We want to encourage people back to the city centre, but also ensure that they get home safely however late their evening out extends. It’s great to work with our transport partners at Devon County Council to be able to provide extra buses for the core residential areas across the city. to offer a safe and reliable way home for people enjoying an evening out or working late shifts.’

Councillor Andrea Davis, Devon County Council Cabinet Member for Climate Change, Environment and Transport, said: “These new services will provide important support to the night-time economy in Exeter on Friday and Saturday evenings at a time when local businesses are looking to make a strong recovery after the pandemic. We're working closely with Stagecoach to ensure access to sustainable and convenient travel to and from the city centre, with safety in mind, particularly for women. These connections are ideal not only for people enjoying an evening out, but also health and care staff on their way home as well as those working at hospitality and leisure businesses.”

Stagecoach and Devon County Council are also delighted to support the Safety of Women at Night Exeter Charter. This charter forms part of the city’s commitment to ensuring Exeter is a safe place, and pledges to prioritise the safety of women, acknowledging it is the responsibility of all of us to take practical steps together to keep our city safe for everyone. With the launch of the new services, Exeter residents are offered a safe option for travelling home right through until 4am.

In addition to the new services, Devon County Council and Stagecoach have worked together to introduce a special £1 single fare for customers using the dedicated night bus services. Customers who are travelling the dedicated Friday and Saturday night trips will be able to purchase the special ticket from the driver when they board. This ticket is valid for the length of the trip, whether heading to the city centre or beyond. Trips valid for £1 travel are clearly marked in yellow on the timetable, or can be viewed here: http://ow.ly/EaWx30sh7RI.

For customers who’ll be travelling earlier in the evening or across multiple buses, Stagecoach has confirmed they’ll be freezing the price of their value Niterider ticket at just £3 on the app. The ticket allows unlimited travel across the whole network from 7pm until end of service. Stagecoach South West Managing director Mike Watson says ‘We are pleased to offer evening travel at the same price as in 2019 across our network. We hope this will support the evening economy in our local areas and allow our customers to travel home safely from their evening out.’