An extraordinary survey carried out by the management of Tavistock Country Bus (TCB) has revealed just how important the operation is to the economy of Tavistock — and the other towns regularly visited by the bus.
The country bus brings passengers into Tavistock, Launceston and other towns from outlying villages and TCB’s management committee wanted to find out how much their passengers actually spent in the different towns they visited. So a spend survey was carried out in May and every passenger who travelled on the bus was given a simple form to complete, stating their destination and how much they spent.
TCB’s Peter Walshe said: “It was revealed that approximately £148,000 is forecast to be spent by TCB passengers through a whole year. This is a truly astonishing figure and TCB passenger spending can be viewed as having a significant and beneficial impact on the local economy. In 2016, over 3,200 passengers travelled to Tavistock. Using the results of the survey, passengers are shown to bring into the Tavistock local economy about £106,000 a year, which is an incredible amount and shows the importance of the Tavistock Country Bus service. It was also possible to work out what passengers were spending in different towns —approximately £11,000 in Launceston, £10,000 in Newton Abbot, £9,000 in Exeter and £4000 in Barnstable. TCB passengers even contribute over £3,000 to Truro and Trago Mills.”
The success of the country bus service is also the reason why it was chosen to be the subject of a specialist study by NatCen Social Research. Derek de Glanville, chairman of TCB, said: “They wanted to know what factors are crucial to the success of a community bus association, so they could advise anyone else who was wanting to start up such a service. I think it was quite a feather in our cap that they chose us!”
Acccording to Derek, the Saturday service to Dawlish, which operates when there is a fifth Saturday in the month, is the rarest scheduled bus route in England. This little-known fact is due to become very famous indeed this September, when BBC’s The One Show climbs aboard the bus to enjoy the TCB experience!
Following requests from passengers and thanks to financial support from the Big Lottery and Devon County Council, the bus has now been fitted with new seatbelts and also has a smart new livery. TCB has also finally got its own bus stop sign in Bedford Square. TCB is run entirely by volunteers, its key purpose is to extend mobility and independence to those who do not have access to public or commercial transport or a car. It is open to everyone, from young mums to older passengers aged 65 and over — many of whom have mobility issues and are susceptible to isolation and loneliness.
The service operates on Tuesday, Thursday and Friday. Passengers are collected from areas around Tavistock and taken to Bedford Square. There are also regular pick-ups from outlying areas, such as Horsebridge in East Cornwall and around West Devon from villages such as Milton Abbot, Lifton, Princetown and Yelverton, as well as regular trips to towns further afield like Truro, Barnstaple, Torquay and Exeter.
Anyone interested in voluntary work with TCB is welcome to contact the friendly management team — an extra pair of hands is always welcome and all training is provided, whether it’s helping with paperwork, maintaining the bookings or driving the bus.
For more information call 07580 260683 or go to www.tavistockcountrybus.co.uk
Jane Honey