Coventry’s Ring & Ride and Bus On Demand services set for trial merger

Two door-to-door bus services currently on offer in Coventry are to be merged to give users access to more vehicles, longer hours of operation, wider coverage and lower fares for many.

The trial merger of West Midlands Bus On Demand and Ring & Ride, although taken in a bid reduce costs following a slow post-Covid recovery, would create the UK’s largest demand responsive transport (DRT) service.

The Ring & Ride service is available door-to-door to anybody who cannot, or finds it difficult, to use regular public transport due to mobility issues or social isolation. It is currently only carrying around a quarter of its pre-covid passenger numbers.

It is now set to be merged into the West Midlands Bus On Demand uber-style shared bus service which was launched in the city last year under the region’s Future Transport Zone trial programme.

The services, which are both run by private operators under contract from Transport for West Midlands (TfWM), are dealing with rising fuel costs, driver shortages, and reduced passenger numbers and could face an uncertain future long term if they continued to operate individually

But a new, expanded, West Midlands Bus On Demand service will benefit from economies of scale including a larger fleet of fully accessible vehicles covering more hours of the day – from 6am-11pm Monday to Friday, 8am to 11pm Saturday and 8am to 3.30pm on Sundays.

Ring & Ride customers will also benefit from the greater coverage of WM Bus On Demand, meaning they will now be able to travel to villages surrounding Coventry. They will also have greater flexibility over bookings – arranging journeys any time between six days ahead to on the day. At present Ring & Ride bookings are only taken the day before.

The trial merger, to be run during 2023, will see the introduction of a new charging structure based on distance travelled, with half-price concession fares available for those 18 and under, elderly users and customers with disabilities. Under the proposed fare structure existing Ring & Ride passengers will pay just £1 for a journey under three miles. This currently costs £1.30. Concession fares for longer journeys of up to 10 miles will be capped at £2.

All users will be able to book via telephone, online or the smartphone app and have the option to pay with cash or card.

Pete Bond, TfWM director of integrated transport services, said: “Like the wider bus industry these services are facing a difficult future following the double-whammy of lower demand after the Covid pandemic and rising costs of operation. But we know the Ring & Ride service in particular offers a valued social lifeline for its customers, who are mostly older or disabled people.

“Passengers of both services will, through the trial, share rides under the West Midlands On Demand banner and now have the opportunity to travel further and at different times of the day. Other than that, the service will be broadly similar to the one currently enjoyed.”

West Midlands Ring & Ride services outside Coventry will continue to operate as present.

TfWM, which is part of the West Midlands Combined Authority (WMCA), has secured Government funding through the City Region Sustainable Transport Settlement, to roll out Bus On Demand services to more parts of the region over the next five years. If the Coventry trial is successful this will include Ring & Ride.

West Midlands Bus On Demand is similar to a taxi service but rides are shared and fares are much lower. Buses are called to the passenger’s location or a nearby ‘virtual bus stop’, via an app. As rides are shared with other passengers, the service may not always take the most direct route.

This demand responsive transport has proved particularly successful in areas where regular timetabled services are not sustainable and for unbroken journeys not covered by main bus routes.