Putting conventional services in the shade

Councillor Mel Kendal, chairman of Transport for South Hampshire and executive member for environment and transport at Hampshire County Council, explains more about the innovation applied to this scheme, and about plans for a wider network in the future

Mel Kendal

14 September 2012

Kendal (left) and Reddy have seen Eclipse’s passenger numbers exceed all expectations in the scheme’s first few months of operation

Eclipse comes complete with real-time passenger information

Phase one of Hampshire County Council’s £24m dedicated busway, the Eclipse service between Gosport and Fareham, opened in April this year and, immediately following its launch, operators First Hampshire and Dorset noted a massive increase in passenger numbers (compared to the services in the area that it replaced) as people tried the new system. The latest figures confirm that the service has remained popular, with a 16% year-on-year increase in passenger numbers recorded for...