A NUMBER of pilot bus schemes across the town will be extended after Basingstoke and Deane Borough Council’s decision-making cabinet voted in favour of extending them.

As previously reported by The Gazette, councillors on the community, environment and partnerships committee considered the outcomes of a commissioning group which looked at what the “council could be doing itself, and with its partners, to better enable residents to access public transport”.

Councillors supported options to continue a number of pilots for evening bus services and the 3B route in South Ham for another six months, and the 654 service which runs between Old Basing and The Costello School for the 2015/16 academic year.

The borough council spends £717,000 per year on subsidies for buses across Basingstoke and Deane, and Hampshire County Council provides £575,000 a year for certain routes.

The transport COG, which took place between May last year and January, identified six key areas where transport could be improved in Basingstoke including improved promotion of public transport in the borough through a website similar to the one used for Transport for London, improved cycle structure and facilities, real-time information at bus stops and an annual transport conference bringing together transport providers.

Members of the borough council’s cabinet rubber-stamped the continuation of the pilot schemes during a meeting on Tuesday evening.

South Ham councillor, Colin Regan, welcomed the recommendation to continue the 3B pilot but said that all routes needed to be advertised more to the public, adding: “I would like to thank Councillor Osselton for providing a bus service for the Berg Estate and South Ham which suffered cuts in the commercial route.”

Cabinet member for partnerships, Cllr Cathy Osselton, said the report was the culmination of work carried out during COG Three, adding: “I endorse what was said about communication. Last week, I met with officers and with the new managing director of Stagecoach, Mike Watson, and decided we have got a gentleman’s agreement to communicate and put it out better.”

She said the council, and the county council, would also be given notice if commercial routes need to change.