Earlier this evening I was one of about eight East Cambridgeshire district councillors who attended a briefing in Ely on a new pilot project called Total Transport.  Cambridgeshire County Council has chosen to run this project in the north part of East Cambs district, including Sutton.

A number of different schemes operate at the moment for transporting people around our area.  These include

• buses to take children to school
• taxis and other means of transport to take children with special educational needs to special education facilities
• ordinary buses serving the public in our towns and villages
• community transport like Dial-a-Ride
• vehicles taking older people to day care
• ambulances and other NHS vehicles providing non-emergency patient transport.

The aim of the new project is to integrate these services where possible to make better use of them, while reducing costs.

This could mean things like fixed bus routes serving both schools and the general public; or combining adult social care journeys and Dial-a-Ride services.  It could mean a wider choice of times of travel, but with pre-booking required.  It could also include things like community car schemes or flexible minibus services.

A small team of staff has been looking at current services, including travelling on the Ely Zipper and talking to passengers, and meeting with service users.  In January they will be carrying out surveys, after which they will be presenting proposals to a ‘steering group’ of county councillors.