Stagecoach to divert Wroughton bus service through Wichelstowe

Bus company Stagecoach have announced that, from 6^th November, they will be diverting their bus service 9 through Wichelstowe. The bus service presently runs direct between Old Town and Wroughton along Croft Road via North Wroughton. From early November it will instead run through East Wichel to Waitrose, then along Mill Lane and Wharf Road to Wroughton High Street. Journeys from Wroughton to Swindon will run via Ridgeway Hospital and Perry’s Lane, then along Wharf Road and Mill Lane back to Waitrose in Middle Wichel.

Journeys on the Stagecoach route between Wichelstowe and Swindon Town centre will be about five minutes quicker than the existing Thamesdown service 15, as the route along Croft Road is more direct. The service will run every 15 minutes during the day, Monday to Saturday, and less frequently in the evening, with no service on Sundays.

A combined bus timetable is on our website, showing all buses through East Wichel. At the time of writing, Stagecoach’s fares were cheaper than Thamesdown’s. Dayrider tickets are £3.50 on Stagecoach, £4.00 on Thamesdown. Single tickets to the town centre are £2.00 on Stagecoach, £2.10 on Thamesdown. The single zone fare that will get you from Waitrose back to East Wichel loaded with shopping is also cheaper, £1.40 on Stagecoach, £1.60 on Thamesdown.

Stagecoach previously ran a service between Swindon town centre and Wroughton via East Wichel from April 2011 to September 2012, well before the Waitrose store in Middle Wichel was built. That service — subsidised by Swindon Borough Council to provide links between East Wichel and Wroughton — was not a success, gaining few passengers between East Wichel and Wroughton but taking passengers from the competing Thamesdown service between East Wichel and Swindon, which was also subsidised. The new Stagecoach service appears to be an entirely commercial venture. Though Stagecoach will hope to gain extra passengers between Wroughton and Waitrose, the new service will once again threaten the viability of Thamesdown’s service 15 beyond Nationwide Building Society headquarters into Wichelstowe, as the Stagecoach service will provide a faster route to Old Town and Swindon town centre than the Thamesdown service.