In line with most other First Group companies, First Solent is improving it’s services across Gosport, Fareham and Portsmouth ahead of the expected relaxation of pandemic restrictions on 17th May. In most cases it is weekend and evening services that are changing, after weekday daytime buses got a boost in April. This is what is changing:
Changes from 16th May
- Service 2 (Gunwharf – Southsea – Copnor – Paulsgrove)
- Increases to every 12 minutes Saturday daytimes
- Increases to every 20 minutes Saturday evenings
- Increases to every 15 minutes Sunday daytimes
- The Star 7 (Commercial Road – North End – Waterlooville – Wecock Farm)
- Service continues to serve QA Hospital Main Gate (instead of QA Steps on the A3)
- Increases to every 15 minutes Monday to Saturday daytime
- Evening service still 2 buses an hour, but not half-hourly….
- The Star 8 (Gunwharf – Stamshaw – Waterlooville – Clanfield)
- Service continues to serve QA Hospital Main Gate (instead of QA Steps on the A3)
- Increases to every 15 minutes Monday to Saturday daytime
- Increases to every 30 minutes Monday to Saturday evenings
- Service 9 & 9A (Gosport – Bay House School – Rowner – Bridgemary – Fareham)
- Weekday timetable runs on Saturdays – albeit with a later start (first bus from Gosport 0720)
- Increases to every 30 minutes on Sundays
- Service 13 & 14 (Commercial Road – Milton / Baffins)
- Increases to hourly in each direction on Saturdays
- Eclipse E1 & E2 (Gosport – Eclipse Busway – Fareham)
- Increases to every 15 minutes on each route on Saturdays (Every 7/8 minutes on the BRT)
- Increases to every 20 minutes on each route on Sundays (Every 10 minutes on the BRT)
- Service F1 (Fareham Highlands Circular)
- The current every 35 minute frequency will continue until the end of service, instead of becoming irregular.
Returning to the Pre-COVID Timetable 16th May
These services are running to their pre-March 2020 timetables from next Sunday:
Service 12: Tipner – North End – St Marys Hospital – Fratton Way Tesco
Service 27: Rowlands Castle – Havant – Emsworth
Service D1 & D2: Waterlooville – Denmead – Hambledon
No summer specials 🙁
Unlike the reminiscing of old, there are no big announcements in the Portsmouth area of any summer open top buses, special services to Lee-on-Solent seafront, or fanciful journeys of wonder. We are not as much as a tourist trap for bus services as the likes of Weymouth and their newly refurbished Jurassic Coast open-toppers:
We can only hope that people will start using the buses more as the restrictions are relaxed. All the talk of employers allowing much more flexible, non-office bases working must have the accountants squirming in their seats as season tickets don’t get renewed and takings start to fall.
Maybe it is time for Portsmouth City Council to start looking at an oversight provision like many other cities are starting. Maybe it is time for Gosport to have another recast of bus services and make the X5 an…. X again. See you out there on the footplate one day.
Such a shame when other South Coast towns have open top buses yet nothing in Southsea! (Or Hayling island but that was best in the 70’s/80’s) Could have had announced just a school holiday open topper!