Funding allows community bus to undergo makeover

A transport charity has been able to provide new seats in one of its community buses thanks to funding from local councillors.

Go Start Community Transport, which provides services in Sudbury and the surrounding villages, has installed new fully upholstered seats to provide comfort and safety to those using its community buses.

The new seating was funded by county councillors John Sayers, Colin Spence and Richard Kemp, who contributed the funds from their locality budgets.

Go Start trustee Nick Reed said that since the new seats had been fitted, the charity had received a lot of positive comments from passengers.

He said: “Putting in new seats is part of our ongoing commitment to provide the best levels of service to those in the community who need it most.

“The new seating has effectively prolonged the life of this vehicle – important from both a budgetary and environmental point of view.

“The seats are wonderful and have been very well-received by our passengers.

“A big thank you must go to our local county councillors for their support.”

The county councillors’ locality budgets are set aside to support community projects.

Go Start operates a fleet of five vehicles, providing vital dial-a-ride transport services to pensioners, schoolchildren, community groups and people with disabilities within an eight-mile radius of their Sudbury headquarters, as well as longer journeys, such as hospital trips and pleasure days, as required.

The new, fully-upholstered seats provide a better travel experience than the plastic ones they replaced and meet the latest safety standards.

The new seats were fitted by Barrett Lee in Sudbury.

With improved seatbelts, they will ensure a more comfortable ride for passengers, while the new seating layout has also been designed to provide better access for people using mobility and walking aids.