A NEW integrated bus-rail link comes to the Yorkshire Dales this coming Bank Holiday, and offers visitors and locals alike an opportunity to leave the car at home.

Running from Ribblehead Station to Hawes, Bainbridge and Aysgarth the new Wensleydale Explorer bus will meet morning trains from Leeds, Keighley, Skipton and Settle at Ribblehead and offer walkers new opportunities to enjoy linear walks along the Pennine Way or through Upper Wensleydale and Wharfedale.

...demonstrates the value of integrating train and bus services to offer perhaps the most beautiful rail-road journey anywhere in England

Howard Handley - Yorkshire Dales Public Transport Users Group

The bus is a joint initiative between the Friends of Settle-Carlisle line and the Settle-based Dales & Bowland Community Interest Company, designed to help visitors to the Dales reduce their carbon footprint by offering superb new opportunities for walkers and sightseers without having to bring their car, or who are willing to park at Skipton or Settle.

The bus will provide a morning link from Leyburn and Hawes before meeting the Carlisle train. On the return run back from Ribblehead Station the Wensleydale Explorer bus will continue as far as Buckden to meet the mid morning Wharfedale bus from Ilkley to Buckden, thus providing the core of a fully integrated network of train and bus service into and through the National Park. Late afternoon services will meet buses back to Ilkley and trains back to Ribblehead.

The Friends of Settle-Carlisle and Dalesbus Ramblers will be providing a programme of walks from the bus and train service. Volunteers will meet trains and buses at Ribblehead to ensure buses wait for trains and passengers have a “seamless” journey. A special £6 bus ticket will allow rail passengers to Ribblehead to travel back down the glorious scenery of Wensleydale and Upper Wharfedale by bus, to make a super scenic round trip.

Breaks of journey will be permitted. Over 60s with permits can use the buses free of charge.

The Wensleydale Explorer will also provide Wensleydale with a badly needed Sunday morning service through to Hawes and also to meet trains to and from Carlisle on the Settle Carlisle line. The 807 will leave Leyburn at 0910, Aysgarth at 0923 and Hawes at 0945 for Ribblehead to give Wensleydale people and holidaymakers chance to travel the celebrated Settle-Carlisle line for a day in Appleby or Carlisle.

The morning Dalesbus 874 bus from Ilkley will serve the whole of Upper Wharfedale before meeting the new Wensleydale service at Buckden car park for Aysgarth and Hawes.

Commented Howard Handley, Chairman of the Yorkshire Dales Public Transport Users Group: “We welcome this new service which demonstrates the value of integrating train and bus services to offer perhaps the most beautiful rail-road journey anywhere in England. This will be superb new service for walkers. And with rising petrol costs, using the train and bus to reach the Dales will increasingly make sense.

Details of the new Wensleydale and linking Wharfedale services are available from local publicity outlets or by logging on www.dalesbus.org