Speaker of the House of Keys Juan Watterson has labelled the new bus timetable as ‘a missed opportunity for the Department of Infrastructure and the south’.

The new timetable will see multiple changes to the services across the island, including buses serving Port Erin and Castletown.

The Rushen MHK said: ‘I appreciate that not everyone can get the bus to work, but I don’t think the government is doing nearly enough to make this an easier decision for those who could.’

‘More opportunity may lie in bringing back a commuter route from the south, reducing journey times and increasing convenience.

‘Under the new timetable, commuters from Port Erin would have to spend over an hour to get to Douglas, as opposed to 30 minutes by car or 40 minutes by commuter bus, such as the former X1 route.’

Services from Port Erin to Cregneash and the Sound will operate on weekends and Bank Holidays from June 17 to September 3.

Mr Watterson said: ‘On the plus side, I am sure our visitors will welcome the connection with Cregneash and the Sound, although only for 24 days a year. It is disappointing that two iconic sites in the south are not served for over 93% of the year.’

The timetables come after the trial of the bus fare cap run by the Department of Infrastructure between November 1, 2022, and March 31, 2023.

‘The DoI’s £2 fare has not demonstrated any increase in bus usage, this is because research shows that frequency and convenience are far more important when it comes to people deciding to use the bus.

‘With journeys from the south to Douglas at £2.50 with a travel card and £3.10 for a single journey, this remains very competitive and affordable and hasn’t changed in some years.

‘However, the department will notice that more people travelled, and revenue rose when the service south was increased to four journeys per hour. The new timetable has just three, including the singular welcome journey per hour from the South direct to Noble’s Hospital.’

The new bus timetable will come into effect next Monday, April 24 ,with full details of the changes available on bus.im and the new timetables available at all bus depots, the Welcome Centre at Douglas Sea Terminal, Ronaldsway Airport and the House of Manannan.