News Release (21/06/10)
Festival-goers could be first to ride in new Flyer
The first of a new look fleet of buses will hit the road next week, in time to carry passengers flying into Bristol Airport to attend the Glastonbury Festival. The vehicle is part of a £2 million makeover which will see 12 new buses operating the Bristol Airport Flyer service over the coming weeks.
The Flyer links the Airport to Bristol Temple Meads, Marlborough Street Bus Station and other city centre locations. The service is operated on behalf of Bristol Airport by First and runs every ten minutes at peak times.
Bristol Airport sees an influx of passengers from across the world each June as music fans flock to the Glastonbury Festival in Somerset. The Flyer links festival-goers to onward rail services from Bristol Temple Meads to Castle Cary, and National Express coaches from Marlborough Street Bus Station to the Glastonbury site.
Tickets for travel, including onward rail connections, can be booked in advance online or using the Fast Ticket machine at the Airport. So far this year, advance bookings have been made by passengers from 46 different countries
The new Volvo vehicles, supplied by Wright Bus (which also provides buses to Transport for London), are wheelchair accessible and passengers are able to take their luggage on board with them, providing peace of mind and speeding up the boarding process.
Each bus features leather seats and wood effect flooring, as well as free Wi-Fi access and power points to charge phones and laptops. The new vehicles will also deliver improvements in fuel efficiency and emissions reductions as they are compliant with Euro 5 standards and run on AdBlue, which reduces oxides of nitrogen.
Tom Hack, Commercial Manager (Ground Transportation) at Bristol Airport, said:
“Over 520,000 passengers have used the Flyer in the last 12 months, and around 10 per cent of all passengers now choose the service.
“The Flyer is particularly popular during the Glastonbury Festival, demonstrating how well the service integrates with the rail and bus network.”