The Superoute 66 bus service operates from Bourne Bridge via
Ipswich Rail Station & Ipswich Town Centre to The Ipswich
Hospital, Rushmere St Andrew, Kesgrave, Grange Farm and Martlesham
Heath. This was the first Superoute service to be developed as a
quality partnership between Suffolk County Council and First
Eastern Counties. The service benefits from a package of
improvements, including a frequency better timetable, new bus
shelters, publicity, new buses, a guided bus way and roadside real
time information system.
The Superoute 66 initiative is a package of measures which, when
combined, give a high-quality bus system. The scheme is a
demonstration, funded by the Department for
Transport (DfT), in partnership with First Eastern Counties
Buses and Suffolk County Council.
A Real Time Passenger Information (RTPI) system is provided in
shelters at key locations around the route by means of colour
LCD displays. The system provides information about the next bus,
with an indication of how far away the bus is in minutes. Similar
RTPI displays are provided in most of the new roadside information
posts. These new posts form combine the bus stop pole and sign with
an integrated timetable display. Standard printed timetables and a
map are provided, as well as the electronic information. The RTPI
system is controlled by a satellite/radio link.
Buses used on the Superoute service are equipped with a small
guidewheel assembly on each front wheel. Only guided buses can use
the Busway between Grange Farm and Kesgrave. At certain stops,
special ramped sections of pavement and raised kerb have been
constructed, to allow buses to "dock" right up to the kerb, using
the guidewheels, leaving no step or gap onto the bus.
The guided busway, a section of specially built bus-only route,
links two areas of housing, at Kesgrave and Grange Farm. This saves
the buses from having to cross and join the main A1214 twice. Other
vehicles, such as cars, are excluded from the busway by small steel
islands at either end of the track. The busway saves about 1½
minutes on every Superoute journey. Selective Vehicle Detection
(SVD) at traffic signals gives Superoute buses an instant green
filter arrow to proceed. This system works by signals from the bus
to a loop in the road, and is implemented at two junctions where
the Superoute turns right across busy roads.
Since it started operating, Superoute 66 has been highly
successful. When operations started, buses ran at 20 minute
intervals. This has since been increased to a 15 minute frequency,
then every 10 minutes in peak hours. Superoute 66 now operates on a
round the clock basis running every 30 minutes from 1900 to
midnight and hourly after that until 0500.
The full Superoute 66 timetable is available here (Adobe
PDF)
Enquiries
Please go to the
Traveline page and type in 66 to find out timetable
information for this service.
For further information, please contact:
- First Eastern Counties, the operator of the service, telephone:
01473 253734;
- or Traveline, telephone: 0871 200 22 33.