A GRASSROUTES bus service set up two years ago in response to public transport cuts affecting Ross-on-Wye, Newent and Ledbury will be providing an hourly service from Monday.

The 232 Daffodil Line serves towns and villages which straddle the Gloucestershire and Herefordshire border and it has gone from strength to strength since its launch.

The route, named after the former Ledbury to Gloucester train line which cut across the area, arguably known for Britain’s best wild daffodil display, emerged after Stagecoach’s decision to axe the regular 132 service from Gloucester to Ledbury and the stretch of the 32 route from Newent to Ross.

Campaigners banded together and created Buses4Us to try to reverse the downward spiral of public transport in the area.

Clare Stone, who leads Buses4Us, is delighted to announce the introduction of a new hourly service on the 232 Daffodil Line bus.

This will double the frequency of departures between Ross, Newent and Ledbury Monday to Saturday, retaining the existing Sunday Service.

She said: “The latest service improvement is the culmination of more than three years of teamwork on the part of two county councils, three town councils, five parish councils, dozens of local businesses and community groups and a small army of volunteers.

“Oh and not to forget one special bus company!

“We have been running with a bus every two hours, seven days a week for over two years now.

“This service improved on what we had before the cuts, as it includes Sundays and an evening service on Fridays and Saturdays.

“Our aim has always been to offer an hourly service. It’s what we had on this route until 2016 and all the research shows that a bus every hour can free many rural residents from private car dependency.”