In December 2023, the local authorities required all bus operators in Wales to complete a full tender exercise ahead of post-COVID government support ending on 31 March 2024.

This enabled Welsh government and the local authorities to review the network and plan, procure and manage a network of services in a consistent and co-ordinated manner to support essential services across local communities.

Bus operators were asked to submit bids for bus routes that were declared no longer commercially viable following the effects of the pandemic and the slower recovery of bus passengers in Wales.

Stagecoach South Wales has been awarded over 50 new tender contracts across South Wales, which includes new routes and areas served by the business.

The contracts awarded by the local authorities will see the operator run bus services across Blaenau Gwent, Bridgend, Caerphilly, Cardiff, Herefordshire, Merthyr Tydfil, Monmouthshire, Newport, Rhondda Cynon Taf and Torfaen to deliver an improved network for local communities across South Wales.

Stagecoach will operate the contracts from 1 April 2024 for three years with an optional extension of two further years. Stagecoach South Wales will serve the local communities with a combined commercial and tendered fleet of 266 buses and 600 drivers.

Martin Gibbon, Managing Director, Stagecoach South Wales, said: “We are delighted to have been awarded these contracts and are looking forward to providing exceptional bus services to customers across South Wales.

“We have a fantastic team who have a proud history of serving the communities across South Wales and the results have been a testament of the hard work they do every day. We continue to work closely with the Welsh Government, our local authority partners and TfW with a shared goal to deliver outstanding services, create a more sustainable future and create better connected communities for our customers as a result”.

Full details and timetables will be available at Stagecoachbus.com.