Free bus link for hospital site

Patients and staff at a hospital on Tyneside are set to benefit from a free bus link.

The new route, servicing South Tyneside District Hospital, will pick up and set down at various stops on Harton Lane and across the hospital site.

It will also run on a demand responsive basis for staff, providing early morning and late evening transport.

The £107,000 scheme will be operated by Nexus, in partnership with the South Tyneside Primary Care Trust.

Half of the funding was provided by the Neighbourhood Renewal Fund with the rest coming from the Nexus Social Inclusion Fund.

'Vital service'

Of that, £15,500 has been used to equip the vehicle with a mobile data terminal and provide the necessary software and staff resources for Nexus to secure a booking and scheduling facility.

Bernard Garner, Nexus' director of development, said: "It's an absolutely vital service for those who don't have a car and who need to get to the hospital for appointments and visits."

South Tyneside mayor, Councillor Bill Lynch, said: "Trying to find your way around hospital sites is difficult enough at the best of times, but when you're a patient or visitor with appointments to keep, it is an unnecessary layer of stress.

"This new free bus service will make a huge difference to people in those circumstances, allowing them to get on to the hospital site quickly and efficiently and once here, to move around the compound with ease."