Growing Aylesbury Vale village celebrates new bus service to local towns

An Aylesbury Vale village has got a new bus service, connecting it to nearby towns.

Great Horwood Parish Council has been lobbying for improved bus services for the village for over a year.

And as of yesterday, Tuesday, January 5, there is a new 60A Red Rose bus service from Buckingham to Aylesbury, stopping at Great Horwood.

The service operates twice daily from Monday to Friday.

Parish Council chairman John Gilbey told the Advertiser he was delighted.

He said: "I went on the first one to Buckingham yesterday morning and it was really good, and the driver was a very cheery, smiley lady bus driver.

"It comes along the normal route from Aylesbury though North Marston, Granborough and Winslow, and then it diverts to Great Horwood instead of going up the A413.

"So there were quite a few people on it already and then three people, including myself, got on it at Great Horwood.

"I think it will grow - I've put it on our Facebook page with a photo of the bus and I've had 57 likes, so that's good.

"One of the issues, of course, is we've now got no bank in Winslow and there's only one bank left in Buckingham, so quite a few people might need to go to Aylesbury just to use a bank."

Mr Gilbey thanked Buckinghamshire Council's public transport development officer, David Horsler, for arranging the new routes, and Trish Cawte and Lynne King of the Winslow and District Community Bus for their help in lobbying for the new service.

"Normally you fight, you fight, you fight and you don't succeed. But this one has worked," he said.

And he hopes other bus links could follow in the future.

"The village is growing, with developments that are happening, and of course they're trying to encourage people not to use their cars so much," he said.

"With the East West Rail and the station coming in Winslow, I think there will be a demand for another sort of service that links in with the station."

The timetable for the new bus service was included in the free parish magazine that was distributed to all households in December.