University’s free bus service – reminder of correct stops
22 Jul 2019
Free bus route made clear and a request to use your unlimited travel card if possible, after review reveals confusion and cost implications
Passengers are reminded to use the correct stops when using the free 147 Stagecoach bus service for University staff and students.
The reminder comes following a review of the service, which revealed there was some confusion for drivers and users and that had resulted in the University wrongly paying for some journeys.
The free service is a specific, inter-site service and runs between the Students Union and Sackville Street.
It takes in stops at the Students Union, University Green, Charles Street car park and Sackville Street. It does not include Piccadilly Station, stops at MMU or at the hospitals.
In addition, passengers who use an unlimited travel card are asked to use that on the 147 rather than their University staff or student card, to save the University paying for their journey unnecessarily.
Director of Estates and Facilities Diana Hampson said: “The University collected data for the service as part of the review of its contract with Stagecoach and found that it was recording journeys not taken by our own staff and students and paying for journeys that were beyond the campus boundary.
“We pay Stagecoach 80p per journey and these extra journeys were having a serious impact on the future affordability of this service, which we feel is important to offer our staff and students.
“Finally, I would ask people who have pre-paid their travel around the city through a travel card already to use this, rather than the free University travel arrangement – it will not cost you any extra but you will help us reduce University costs.”
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