Become the one to experience the Matrix
Bus passengers wanting to head from Nuneaton and Bedworth into Coventry city centre will now just have to look out for the new Matrix buses.
Three key routes into and around Coventry are to benefit from some of the biggest improvements in bus services that the city has seen in years thanks to a unique partnership agreement signed yesterday.
Bus company Stagecoach, transport authority Centro, Coventry City Council and Warwickshire County Council have all endorsed the Voluntary Partnership Agreement, committing to provide quality bus services on routes 55, 56 and 57.
Thanks to the deal, customers using the enhanced ‘Matrix services’, which link the city centre with north Coventry, Nuneaton and Bedworth, will ride on 14 new low floor, easy access buses thanks to a £1.8 million investment by Stagecoach.
Each of the new vehicles has a modern Euro 4 environmentally friendly engine – omitting less pollutants and being more fuel-efficient. Each has Italian designed seats, improving comfort and plenty of space for buggies and wheelchairs.
Passengers will also benefit from regularly cleaned buses and a better timetable - including an increased 10 minute frequency on the Holbrook Road - while drivers operating the buses are having extra training in customer care and disability awareness. The changes will come into effect on Monday (2 June).
Phil Medlicott, Stagecoach in Warwickshire’s Managing Director, said: “This investment in new buses is opening up accessible public transport to more and more people in Coventry and surrounding areas. The partnership agreement also shows that we, along with Centro, Coventry City Council and Warwickshire County Council, are serious about improving bus services in the city.
“At a time when fuel prices are continually rising and we each need to do our bit to reduce our carbon footprint, these improvements will make a real difference and go along way to encouraging more people to choose the bus.”
Centro will be providing and maintaining branding and up-to-date information at bus stops along the route in Coventry, as well as cleaning all shelters on a weekly basis and repairing any damage within 48 hours.
It will also be doing an extensive marketing campaign to make people aware of the improvements, which it is hoped will encourage more people to leave their car at home and use the bus instead, helping to ease congestion and reduce carbon emissions in the area.
Geoff Inskip, Chief Executive of Centro, said: “I am delighted to be signing this partnership agreement, which shows how we will work together with Stagecoach and Coventry and Warwickshire councils to provide the high quality, frequent and accessible services that passengers want and that provide an attractive alternative to the car.
“I hope that we can now build on these improvements to provide these enhanced services on a wider scale, so that more people throughout Coventry and the West Midlands can benefit from an enhanced, high quality public transport experience.”
Cllr Martin Heatley, Warwickshire County Council’s Portfolio Holder for the Environment, was present at yesterday’s signing and said: “Public transport has got to be an easy and convenient experience for people to want to use it – hopefully the people of Nuneaton and Bedworth will enjoy the new Matrix buses.
“We will be looking to provide highways improvements, including easy access raised kerbing at stops on the Matrix routes, making it easier for people with mobility problems to board the new easy access buses.”
Warwickshire County Council will also be responsible for bus information and branding within the county boundary.
Commenting on the ‘Matrix’ name Phil Medlicott said: “We have 3 routes that run into Coventry down the Holbrook Road - the 55, 56 and 57. But it doesn’t matter which one people catch if they want to get to the city centre; so we have branded all the buses as ‘Matrix’. This means people simply need to catch a Matrix bus!”