Colchester Park and Ride services support the delivery of the four Everyone’s Essex goals. They support the economic growth of Colchester by enabling people to access work, training, education, shops and leisure without the growth limiting impacts of congestion. They improve the environment by reducing trips by car into the city centre, thereby improving air quality, reducing carbon emissions and making the city centre a more pleasant place to be as a pedestrian or cyclist. They support children accessing school and education and families accessing healthcare, work and other services. They promote health and wellbeing by providing a good value option for stress free travel into the city centre and to Colchester Hospital.
The contract for the delivery of these services expires on 25th September 2026 and a decision is needed on whether the services should continue.
This paper seeks permission to
- the procurement of bus routes to serve the Colchester site for either three or four years
- consult upon reducing on-site customer service support at both sites so that in-person help is only available at peak times in the morning; and
the introduction of a £2 student ticket to sit between the £1 child fare and £3 adult day ticket.
- that the terms of the proposed contracts will include a requirement on the contractor to move from diesel to electric vehicles when ECC assesses that that option is available and offers value for money
- the funding options, including using Department for Transport (DfT) Bus Grant for 2025/26
- increase ticket prices with effect from 1 August 2025.