Cumbria’s major bus operator Stagecoach has called for urgent co-ordination over roadworks in Carlisle after major disruption to its services.
The travel firm said in recent weeks, multiple sets of roadworks had been carried out at the same time across key corridors, including Warwick Road, Eastern Way, Victoria Road and Burgh Road roundabout, resulting in significant congestion and delays.
It said the road network was already under strain due to the ongoing construction of the Carlisle Southern Link Road and the continued closure of Newbiggin Road.
Stagecoach added: “There is additional pressure following previous city centre improvement work, which removed bus priority measures and reduced the number of bus stops available to customers.”
It said Stagecoach’s Service 63 was among the most heavily impacted.
Diversions due to works on Victoria Road have forced buses onto Eastern Way, where congestion linked to other roadworks has compounded delays, while additional disruption on Warwick Road has further affected journey reliability.
Yesterday, Tuesday May 26, it added, temporary traffic signals at Burgh Road roundabout contributed to severe congestion, with reports of delays of up to an hour on the Carlisle bypass and backlogs across the city.
Tom Waterhouse, Stagecoach Cumbria and Lancashire managing director, said: “First of all, I would like to apologise to our customers for the significant disruption and frustration many have experienced in recent weeks. We fully recognise how important reliable bus services are to the communities we serve.
“The current situation in Carlisle has become extremely challenging, driven by the volume of simultaneous roadworks and ongoing pressure on an already constrained road network.
“While individual infrastructure schemes may be necessary, the lack of effective co-ordination between work is creating avoidable and compounding disruption for passengers.
“We are investing additional resources where we can to maintain services and support customers, but many of the delays we are seeing are outside of our control.
“We are now calling for greater co-ordination of roadworks activity and urgent action on bus priority measures across Cumberland to help keep public transport moving reliably through the region after severe issues.
“Improved planning and closer working between all parties is essential if we are to reduce the impact on passengers and keep the city moving.
“Our teams continue to work under very difficult conditions and we would like to thank customers for their continued patience.”
The operator added stronger engagement between local authorities and transport providers was essential to ensure roadworks were better sequenced and that measures were in place to protect essential bus services during periods of disruption.
