YELLOW Buses and Yellow Coaches have announced new routes and changes to some of their existing school bus routes.

As a result of social distancing during the last school year, the Department for Education, through BCP Council, paid to duplicate some of the school services.

However, the duplicates buses that ran last year will not run this year.

As a result, Yellow Buses and Yellow Coaches have modified some of the routes to better match empty seats to boarding places.

Commercial Director for Yellow Buses and Yellow Coaches Simon Newport said: “It is great that school travel is growing for our business.

“Yellow Coaches now operate a number of contracts across the sub region and Yellow Buses has been successful in being re-awarded the contracts to provide route 46 and 81 to Avonbourne Academy in BCP.

“We have also launched an easier way to pay. Parents can now spread the cost of travel through 10 monthly instalments at ‘Yours by Yellow’ which is hosted by Yellow Coaches but can be used on all our school routes.”

At Yellow Buses the two key schools where routes have changed are to St Peters School and Avonbourne Academy.

Yellow Buses is also operating a new contract for Dorset Council between Sturminster Marshall and Corfe Hills School.

For students paying for travel on school buses we have a new way to pay, this can be through 10 monthly instalments by direct debit.

Yellow Coaches will be operating two new school routes in addition to the one for Wiltshire Council between No Mans Land and Trafalgar School in Fordingbridge.

The new routes include Alderholt to Burgate School on behalf of Dorset Council, and a route on behalf of Twynham School, between Wallisdown, Winton, Charminster and the main school campus.

These routes are all closed door, and students will need to contact the institution or Council to claim a seat.