Cambridgeshire & Peterborough Combined Authority are considering changing one journey on the existing Ely Zipper bus timetable. They have written to Haddenham, Stretham, Wilburton and Witcham parish councils with three options.
The first Zipper journey into Ely currently leaves Witcham at 06:52. It is scheduled to arrive at Ely Tesco at 07:15, but normally arrives at 07:12. This leaves only two minutes before the train departs from Ely railway station at 07:14. If the bus arrived at Ely Tesco at 07:07, there would be seven minutes for passengers to catch the 07:14 train.
The options are as follows:
- Zipper to start from Haddenham at 06:45 but no longer call at Witcham Monday to Saturday.
- Zipper to start from Haddenham at 06:45 and no longer call at Witcham Monday to Friday, but the existing journey starting from Witcham at 06:45 would operate on Saturday.
- Leave the journey as it is at present and make no change.
All other journeys would remain the same and the bus would continue to call at Witcham as it does at present.
The Combined Authority says that continuing to serve Witcham on the amended journey would lead to an increase in the contract cost, and there is not enough money to do so at present. The three options would not increase the cost of the contract.
The bus company has advised that it is exceptionally rare for any passengers to join the bus before the Spar Shop in Haddenham High Street (Hop Row) on the first journey of the day. Last year they very occasionally picked up one passenger in Witcham on a Saturday morning. During the week they never collect anyone there.
If you use the Zipper from Haddenham, Stretham Wilburton or Witcham, and have a view about the options for the first journey of the day, please do let your parish council know.
Very unfair that this service does not cover Witchford therefore forcing many parents to do the station run each day before work. Yes Witchford has a bus service but only goes into Market street so leaving a 15-20 minute walk to the station still.
So ridiculous that I drive from Witchford to Ely station and then back parking in Witchford Main St to go to work at the primary school which if there was a decent bus service, I could walk to work in 5 minutes! This is not helping our planet!!
Travelled on local buses for over 50yrs. School, work and pensioner trips. Do not wish to be negative but there is never a solution that suits everyone for long. The Zipper team do the best they can. Stagecoach have changed their times, so if you travel to Stretham on the first Zipper bus you cannot change on to their first bus to Cambridge. Likewise, train times have changed. BUT, the trains to Cambridge early morning are frequent, check out the online timetables. You do not have to wait long for the next train if you miss the one that is now the main focus. These are just 2 examples of the changes that affect the Zipper timetable. I often use the first bus of the day and the Haddenham Spar stop. I agree there are hardly ever any passengers already on the bus when I get on. Best wishes.
while I totally agree it’s not possible to appease everyone, I think the change is a good one as long as the Witcham stop isn’t used on that bus as described by the drivers (who are both great and know their routes very well so I think they will be right).
The train in question here is the London Kings Cross service, not Cambridge – at the moment it’s not possible to get into London before 9am with this bus, but with a marginally earlier bus start this would become possible and would greatly improve the car-free London commute.
The Cambridge trains are v frequent – at least every 15 mins, if not more often. The London trains are only every half an hour and the earliest train possible to catch with this bus right now is one that arrives just after 9am.
The London Kings Cross trains are ONLY every half an hour!!! Lots of folks are lucky to have a train service at all. London Kings Cross trains used to stop at Ely and pick up passengers to go to CAMBRIDGE and LONDON KINGS CROSS. Or has that changed as well? Do the London Kings Cross trains no longer stop at Cambridge?
They do stop at Cambridge yes, but, only every half an hour and it’s the Ely connection 🙂
(and it’s a pretty good service, I’m not complaining about that at all, just noting that this is about the London train not the far more frequent Cambridge one)
I live in Witcham and have a daughter that goes to college in Cambridge but we very rarely (only when she has a late start on a Friday) use the zipper currently because the bus times don’t match any of the train times before 9am, or the evening return around 4.30. We would definitely use it more if the Ely Tesco arrival times matched the Cambridge trains (the 8am and 8.25am) but as it stands I have to drive her in and collect her each day to save best part of an hours wait each side of the day. I cannot believe yet again they are considering cutting Witcham from the route altogether! As of September I will have another child starting at a different sixth form in Cambridge, most likely on a different timetable, so I guess that will mean me driving back and forth to Ely up to 4 times per day rather than twice if we lose the bus service. This will be on top of building in a Witchford VC school run for another child because the school has just cut the late bus to Witcham to incorporate an Ely drop because there are “only a couple of students” that live in Witcham. I see people at the bus stop all the time, especially in the summer months when the campsite is open. And the alleged “only one person” that uses it obviously needs it! So basically we can have more and more houses being developed within this village but absolutely no services.
Hi Fiona
I think they are only proposing cutting Witcham from the first bus, which wouldn’t tie in with your daughter’s Cambridge commute as this one gets in to the Tesco stop at 7:12 currently. The next bus and the rest throughout the day would include Witcham.
All very difficult. Do not think there will ever be a system that sorts it for all of us. Best Wishes.
You’re completely right, Vicky.
All public transport needs improvement for everyone – right now most public transport is so limited that most people can’t use it when they would have needed to, which makes fewer people use it, which gives good argument to cut much-needed servies, and it gets worse so fewer people use it (and round it goes!).
We are so lucky to have the Zipper, it’s a great service whether this change comes in or not – the drivers are wonderful and the route is key to lots of people (me included)
Thank you to all for your responses and comments. I’ve drawn this conversation to the attention of the Combined Authority, and hope they will consider the range of view here.