IMPROVEMENTS have been made to a bus service used by school students after safety concerns were raised by parents.

Last October, the SNJ reported how worried parents were concerned about their children’s safety after a timetable change on the 62 Stagecoach service led to some pupils waiting well over an hour for a bus home from school.

Changes have now been made to the service as part of a wider raft of measures to improve school bus services in the Stroud area.

Stagecoach West says changing the timings of three services will ‘vastly improve’ school transport in the area.

The 60, 62 and 63 services are all being changed to better suit the start and finish of the school day.

After feedback, improvements are being made to the 62 which is used by Marling, Stroud High and Archway students.

From November 3, the 2.30pm bus from Gloucester to Stonehouse will leave Stroud at 3.19pm meaning it will pass both schools after the end of the school day, making travel home for students much easier.

As a result of this change, the 3.34pm bus from Stonehouse to Gloucester will now leave at 3.51pm and run at new times.

A year ago, the SNJ reported how pupils were having to wait well over an hour for the 62 to get home after timetable changes.

As well as addressing these concerns, Stagecoach says the new timetables for the three routes will improve school connections.

Chris Hanson, managing director at Stagecoach West, said: “We’re delighted to be introducing these improvements to our services in and around Stroud.

“We’re constantly reviewing our timetables and listening to customers and try to react quickly to implement change and updates where required.

“These changes will improve the daily commute for many in the area, including travel for young people studying at Marling and Stroud High Schools.”

Changes to the number 60 are being made from November 3 to improve punctuality for passengers connecting with the 65 service to and from Stroud.

Meanwhile, timings on the 63 service from Gloucester to Forest Green will also be altered with the 5.10pm now leaving at 5.15pm (Monday to Friday) and running at new times until Stroud at 6pm when the usual timetable will be followed.

Gloucestershire County Council’s education and bus transport cabinet member Philip Robinson said: “We’re happy that these timings offer better connections for passengers, in particular pupils attending schools in Stroud.

“We continue to work in partnership with Stagecoach to find solutions in response to customer concerns.”

Further improvements to Stagecoach services were implemented at the start of September.

This includes extra trips between Stroud and Dursley on the 65 (Stroud to Gloucester) on Sundays.

Meanwhile, there are more trips on Monday to Saturday evenings on the 67 service (Bussage to Cashes Green).

The Sunday service for the 67 which was previously cancelled in February 2023 - has also returned.