BUS passengers in Thatcham will soon be able to find out exactly when the next service is due to arrive, when five new real-time trial bus shelters are installed.
The advanced technology will use satellite tracking to display when the next numbered service will arrive, as well as displaying other information, similar to the digital displays used in London underground stations.
Five new bus shelters will be installed – two in the Broadway, one in Lower Way, one at the Wyevale Garden Centre roundabout on the A4, and one at West Berkshire Community Hospital, London Road.
West Berkshire Council’s executive member for highways, Emma Webster (Con, Birch Copse), said: “This is another example of the council’s commitment to improve the infrastructure for public transport where possible.”
It is hoped that the trial will begin by early summer. Costing £83,000, the district council claimed that these costs have been kept to a minimum by joining forces with Reading Borough Council and Wokingham Council, and using Reading’s computer server to operate the system. The council could not say how long the trial will last for but said that the displays will be monitored for as long as necessary and, should the trial prove a success, the council would hope to expand the scheme to other parts of the district if the funding was available.
Other bus stops are to be revamped as well, with six shelters without the real-time systems being relocated from Colthrop to Thatcham.
The shelters are made of steel and the lights will be solar powered, automatically switching off during the day to conserve energy. Two will be installed on Benham Hill, and the four others will go to Westfield Road, Henwick Lane, Park Avenue and Bowling Green Road.
West Berkshire Council’s shadow executive member for transport and highways, councillor Keith Woodhams (Lib Dem, Thatcham West), said that he was delighted.
“We have been waiting a long time for the shelters to come to Benham Hill,” he said. “It is wonderful that people catch the bus but they have to stand in the wind and the rain. The residents wanted the bus shelter and included it on a petition.
“It is quite an achievement to get these out of the two councils. They are incredibly expensive and have been relocated from Colthrop.
“We are making good progress to encourage even more residents to leave their cars at home and take the bus.”