Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
The Shropshire Hills Shuttle is a seasonal minibus service from two small
railhead towns of Church Stretton and Craven Arms into a very rural part of
the AONB. The minibus service was originally developed in the mid-1990s by
the National Trust, at their property Carding Mill Valley near to Church
Stretton. In order to respond to the pressure of car-borne traffic accessing the
hills, the Trust decided to employ a local bus operator to run a shuttle bus up
a narrow road, the Burway, to the Long Mynd hill ridge. In 2001, adminis-
tration of the shuttle was transferred to TESS (Transport for Everyone in
South Shropshire), a community transport organization. It expanded the
Shropshire Hills Shuttles network with government funding. However, in
2004 funding was reduced, and together with continued support from the
National Trust, Natural England and Shropshire County Council, three shut-
tles have been retained: Long Mynd, Stiperstones and Secret Hills Shuttles,
offering an hourly service on weekend days.
In 2008, the AONB agreed to manage the Shropshire Hills Shuttle (with
the existing partners) in order to stabilize funding support and to coordinate
marketing of the service, linking up to plan and implement the operation and
marketing of the bus. The Institute of Transport and Tourism (2008) under-
took surveys on the service in 2005/06 and 2008. The findings indicated that
there are three main types of user, of approximately equal proportions:
•
local people on visits to the shops, to meet friends or for a meal
•
sightseers - visitors to the area who use the shuttle to see local attractions
and landscapes
•
walkers, who use the bus to undertake linear walks.
The shuttle travel experience
The researchers reported that users like the service not only for the scenery,
but also because it is a social travel experience. Being in such a confined space
in the minibus means that passengers and drivers readily engage in conversa-
tion on the route and it is a relaxing experience. The report found that the
drivers were pivotal to the success of the service. The researchers concluded
that there was a form of community branding being established. People even
came to visit the area at weekends so that they could ride one of the shuttles
as part of the tourist experience. They had built a sense of loyalty and effec-
tive feeling for the shuttles, whether they lived nearby or came from far away.
Pubs and cafes on the route welcome the business from the shuttles and rec-
ommend it to their wider customer base. The study also noted 69 per cent of
users in 2008 had a car available on the day of travel, indicating that the serv-
ice is contributing to the low-carbon strategy of the AONB.
Demand for the shuttles has increased during the past five years (see Table
8.1), including a 19 per cent increase between 2008 and 2009.
Lessons learned
Recreation and tourism services can succeed if they are well planned and
designed so as to meet the aspirations of visitors and residents. Success criteria
