<![CDATA[Dorset transport and travel information

<![CDATA[Dorset transport and travel information - Blog]]>Thu, 10 May 2012 03:17:41 +0000Weebly<![CDATA[Cruise season begins in Portland]]>Thu, 03 May 2012 08:13:49 +0000http://www.dorset-transport.info/1/post/2012/05/cruise-seasons-begins-in-portland.html

Vision of the Seas

2000 passengers will disembark in Portland this morning from the cruise liner Vision of the Seas. This visit by the Royal Caribbean Lines ship marks the start of a record season of visits by cruise liners to Portland Port.

Portland Port have increased their facilities to cater for visiting ships in 2012.

Today passengers will be greeted by Portland Town Crier, Stuart Cave, and tourism students from Weymouth College, who will provide the passengers with information about the area. Some will go on coach tours of the Jurassic Coast and others will spend their day locally. With each passenger expected to spend around £100, the cruise business gives a great boost to the economy of Weymouth & Portland and the surrounding area.

This evening passengers will be entertained by Weymouth Concert Brass Band, and the ship will be given a send-off by the firing of canon at Nothe Fort.

]]><![CDATA[South-East Dorset bus travel receives £3.4 million boost]]>Fri, 30 Mar 2012 17:21:20 +0000http://www.dorset-transport.info/1/post/2012/03/south-east-dorset-bus-travel-receives-34-million-boost.htmlBus passengers in South East Dorset are set to reap the rewards after the Department for Transport awarded £3.435 million pounds of Government funding towards improving local bus travel in South East Dorset.

The funding comes as a result of a successful joint application “Better Bus Area Fund Bid” from the transport authority departments for Bournemouth Council (lead authority), Borough of Poole Council And Dorset County Council. The bid was also supported by the area’s main two bus operators, Yellow Buses and Wilts and Dorset.

The funding will be used towards improving the quality of bus travel locally in the following ways over the next two years:

Improving Real Time Information for travellers at the busiest stops; this will include an upgrade of 100 signs at the busiest stops to the latest generation displays

Raising awareness of local bus travel through joint operator and Local Authority Marketing campaigns

Higher quality, safer and more secure bus stops through the upgrade of a number of the key bus stops along major bus routes to high specification facilities (includes new shelters, footway surfacing, provision of access kerbs and clearway markings). Solar powered lighting be installed at 275 stops

Tackling a number of points of localised congestion and delays to traffic along the key bus corridors within the local area to improve bus reliability/punctuality

Installing audible announcement devices on over 250 buses on the two main bus operators in the area (Yellow Buses and Wilts and Dorset) for drivers. New energy efficient LED saloon lighting on over 250 buses and additional customer care driver training

]]><![CDATA[Enhanced public transport to Weymouth for the Olympics]]>Mon, 26 Mar 2012 10:27:37 +0000http://www.dorset-transport.info/1/post/2012/03/enhanced-public-transport-to-weymouth-for-the-olympics.htmlExtra buses and longer trains will operate to and from Weymouth during the Olympics from 27 July to 12 August.
South-West Trains to and from Southampton and London will run longer trains on many services. First Great Western from Bath and Bristol will also operate longer trains. It is also understood that some Arriva Cross-Country trains from the Midlands will be extended from Bournemouth to Weymouth.

Bus services will also be enhanced. The X53 bus between Poole, Weymouth and Exeter will run hourly, instead of two-hourly. The X43 will run two-hourly from Swanage and Wareham. The route 1 between Weymouth and Portland will run every few minutes with double-deck buses in place of single-deckers.

If travelling by car is your only option you will need to book a space in one of the park and ride sites via the website:
http://www.firstgroupgamestravel.com/park-and-ride.
PLEASE NOTE: Private cars will be banned from Weymouth during the period of the Olympics unless the driver is in possession of a special pass. Public transport is definitely the best option for visiting the town.

]]><![CDATA[Ferry Barfleur will move to Dover]]>Sat, 24 Mar 2012 09:51:26 +0000http://www.dorset-transport.info/1/post/2012/03/ferry-barfleur-will-move-to-dover.htmlPoole's popular ferry Barfleur will operate from Dover to Calais from 27 April. The ship, which is still owned by Brittany Ferries will be chartered to DFDS Seaways who already operate one ship on the Dover-Calais route.

The Barfleur has been laid up in Caen since being withdrawn from the Poole-Cherbourg route last Autumn. Brittany Ferries decided not to operate the ferry again on the Poole route as it is not profitable. They will, however, continue to charter the Condor Express high-speed ferry to operate the Poole-Cherbourg route during the summer season only.

It is understood the Barfleur will operate for DFDS with a French crew, but will be renamed and repainted.

]]><![CDATA[Extra trains into Weymouth during the Olympics]]>Mon, 19 Mar 2012 18:28:13 +0000http://www.dorset-transport.info/1/post/2012/03/extra-trains-into-weymouth-during-the-olympics.html

Arriva Cross-Country will be running trains into Weymouth from the Midlands and North during the period of the Olympic Sailing Events. Normally Cross-Country Trains only run as far as Bournemouth but two or three each day will be extended to and from Weymouth.

In addition First Great Western Trains from Bristol to Weymouth will be putting on longer trains to cater for the extra passengers wishing to travel to and from Weymouth daily.

South-West Trains between London Waterloo and Weymouth already operate twice an hour so are unlikely to run extra services but peak trains may have extra carriages.

]]><![CDATA[Condor move all sailings from Weymouth to Poole]]>Wed, 14 Mar 2012 18:28:52 +0000http://www.dorset-transport.info/1/post/2012/03/condor-move-all-sailings-from-weymouth-to-poole.html

All high-speed sailings will now depart from Poole until at least November. This decision follows a survey and temporary repairs to the quayside at the Weymouth terminal. The damage is far more serious than first thought and cannot be repaired successfully in the short-term.
This is devastating news for the Weymouth economy which benefits to the value of over £7m annually from the sailings of Condor Ferries from the town to the Channel Islands and France.
Local guest-house owners and hoteliers are particularly hard-hit. They have had to endure fewer guests due to the horrendous Olympic roadworks that have taken place in Weymouth over the past two years, and now the withdrawal of ferry sailings from the town.
The fear is now that Condor Ferries may decide to operate all their sailings from Poole on a permanent basis.

]]><![CDATA[Poole Twin Sails Bridge]]>Mon, 12 Mar 2012 08:48:00 +0000http://www.dorset-transport.info/1/post/2012/03/poole-twin-sails-bridge.htmlThe bridge is due to be officially opened today by the Princess Royal. There are problems with the road surface, however, and although the Princess Royal will attend today, the £37m structure will not yet be open to traffic.
Several thousand people have already crossed the new bridge on foot.

When the bridge is open to road traffic it will provide a much needed second crossing of Poole Harbour.

]]><![CDATA[Many more flights this year from Bournemouth]]>Thu, 12 Jan 2012 13:39:54 +0000http://www.dorset-transport.info/1/post/2012/01/many-more-flight-this-year-from-bournemouth.htmlRyanair have today announced two new routes from Bournemouth airport. They are to Carcassonne (France) and Rhodes (Greece). These are in addition to the following 13 routes which commence in February or March: Alicante, Faro, Fuerteventura, Gran Canaria, Ibiza, Lanzarote, Malaga, Malta, Murcia, Palma (Mallorca), Pisa, Tenerife and Wroclaw.

2011 saw a reduction in routes and passenger numbers in line with the slowdown in the economy. It is good, therefore, to see new routes starting in 2012.

]]><![CDATA[2012 is a bumper year for steam trains in Dorset]]>Fri, 06 Jan 2012 16:04:07 +0000http://www.dorset-transport.info/1/post/2012/01/2012-is-a-bumper-year-for-steam-trains-in-dorset.html

More steam-hauled charter trains will operate this year into and from Dorset than ever before.

The Dorset Coast Express from London to Bournemouth and Weymouth will run on July 5, 12, 19 and 26, then August 14, 15, 21 and 28, and September 13, 20 and 27.

The Weymouth Seaside Express from Bristol to Weymouth will run on July 1, 8, 15 and 22, then August 19 and 26, then September 16 and 23. The gaps preventing a weekly service are due to the Olympic sailing events in Weymouth.

There will also be steam-hauled special trains to Swanage on April 19 (from Banbury and Oxford), June 14, 15 and 21 (from London) , September 13 and October 11 (also from London). The trains on 15 June and 13 September will be extra special as they will be the all-Pullman Orient Express.

There will also be a steam-hauled special (The Royal Wessex) from Sussex to Bournemouth, Wareham and Weymouth on 30 June.

In the opposite direction there will be steam-hauled special trains (Bath Spa Express) from Poole and Bournemouth to Bath on Wednesdays April 18, May 16, June 20, August 15, September 5, October 3, November 28, December 5.
This year for the first time there will also be steam-hauled special trains from Poole and Bournemouth to Oxford (May 2 and September 19) and to Windsor (June 6 and August 22)

The trains will bring a variety of locomotives to Dorset. It is provisionally planned that the train from Banbury to Swanage on April 19 will be hauled by "Princess Elizabeth", a very appropriate choice in the Queen's Jubilee Year.)

]]><![CDATA[Swanage Railway winter shuttle]]>Fri, 23 Dec 2011 17:46:39 +0000http://www.dorset-transport.info/1/post/2011/12/swanage-railway-winter-shuttle.html

A diesel shuttle between Norden Park & Ride and Corfe Castle will operate on Saturdays and Sundays from 7 Jan to end of Feb. The fare will be just £1 single per adult and children travel free. There is a £2 parking charge at Norden.

Normally the railway does not operate at that time, but the service will run this year to assess demand.

Check the Swanage Railway website for the timetable.

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