Bude Park and Ride Pilot - first weekend

This weekend saw the launch of the Bude Park and Ride, with a steady flow of customers, despite the awful weather on Sunday. The Bude Park and Ride pilot is part of the Future Coast Bude project. It is funded through the Defra Flood and Coastal Resilience Programme and was a recommendation in the Bude Town Vision.

Tony Gibbs, Town Team Lead, who developed the Vision, said ‘The Town Team worked with the local community to consider what could be done to improve Bude in the future. One of the issues that was identified was the congestion and poor environment that car traffic has for people in the town. A key recommendation of the report was for Bude to have a Park and Ride service. It is fantastic that the funding brought to the town through the Future Coast Bude project has allowed this to be piloted, and shows the benefit of having projects ready to go, for when funding becomes available.’

Locals and visitors alike used the service, with 100% of feedback in the first weekend saying the service was excellent and that they would use it again or recommend to friends and family.

The field, which the Dennis Family have kindly given their project permission to use, is located just off the A39, and has space for around 80 cars, with the ability to extend if the demand is there. It is in an ideal location between the King’s Hill junction for the town and the Hillhead/ Penbode roundabout.

Parking is free, with ticket prices £2 per adult, £1 per child and £6 for a family of up to two adults and 4 children.

The first weekend brought a real mixture of local families, people walking from nearby houses, visitors to the area and people using the free parking to allow them to use connecting buses in town to other destinations.

The service is running for six weeks, from 19 July to 30 August, 7 days a week, from 9:30 – 19:00.

Comments included praise for the ease of use, friendly drivers and regular service.

Additional signage is being investigated to make it even easier for tourists to choose this as the hassle free option for visiting the town. One visitor to Bude who used the service mentioned how it is clear that the town desperately needs this service as the traffic was so dreadful.

It is hoped that this service can improve the experience of visiting the town in peak season for locals and visitors alike. One local commented that she had spent significantly more money in the local shops than normal, as she didn’t feel under pressure to get back to the car.