news
PR2 service extended to 2020
We are pleased to announce that the Park & Ride PR2 service has been extended until 2020.
The route, which serves the city centre, law courts and University of Portsmouth campus has been operating on a one-year trial since September 2018.
From Monday 16 September we are introducing some changes to our timetable which will enable us to provide a more staggered service with PR1.
The PR2 service will now start at 7.05am from the Park & Ride terminal and will operate every 30 minutes. The last bus returning from the University of Portsmouth, Cambridge Road, to the Park & Ride terminal will leave at the earlier time of 7.19pm.
If you have any queries please email parkandride@portsmouthcc.gov.uk
Get to Race for Life with Park & Ride Portsmouth
Race for Life takes place on Sunday, 7 July on Southsea Common. Park & Ride will be running a normal Sunday service with buses departing every 15 minutes from the Park & Ride terminal to the Hard, from 9.15am to 6pm (last return bus). See our timetable and prices here.
From the Hard there is a half-hourly Hoverbus service which will take you directly to Clarence Pier, opposite Southsea Common. Hoverbus offer Park & Ride customers a special fare of £6 each way for five people (normally £2 per person each way or £3.50 return).
If you would prefer to walk, you can take in the sights along the seafront in a pleasant half an hour stroll from the Hard.
Find out more about Portsmouth Race for Life at VisitPortsmouth.
The Hard Interchange scoops top local award
Portsmouth City Council's state of the art transport hub has just been named 'Best New Building' in the Portsmouth Society's Design Awards. The Hard Interchange was one of six local buildings to receive an award and, along with the Tennis Pavilion in Canoe Lake, came away as joint overall winner on the night.
Councillor Lynne Stagg, Portsmouth's Cabinet Member for Traffic and Transportation, attended the award ceremony on Wednesday 24 October and said. "I am delighted to receive this award on behalf of Portsmouth City Council and our contractors AHR Group and Osborne. We believe the Hard Interchange acts as an impressive gateway to the city, and to receive such an award from the local people who use it is praise indeed.
"The Hard is hugely important to Portsmouth as a transport interchange. It is a site where bus, train and ferry services come together and for many people it is the first thing they see when arriving in the city."
The new Hard Interchange opened to the public on 14 May 2017. The iconic terminal building includes a gift shop, a visitor information centre and refreshment facilities and offers fantastic views of some of Portsmouth's finest tourist attractions.
Public transport providers Stagecoach, FirstBus, National Express, Park & Ride and Mega Bus operate from the hub and between them facilitate over 600 bus and coach departures each day. A staggering 4 million ferry passengers and 2million rail passengers travel through the interchange each year, and over 1.6million bus and coach passengers have benefited from the state of the art terminal.
The regeneration of the Hard was carried out by contractors Osborne and was funded by the Solent Local Enterprise Partnership and Portsmouth City Council. Further plans to develop the waterfront and connect the existing 'Millennium Walkway' were announced in March 2018, when Transport Minister Jesse Norman MP officially opened the Interchange.
A bundle of prizes for lucky one millionth Park & Ride customer
Travelling from West Sussex with her husband, Joanne was surprised and delighted to receive the news that she was the one millionth person to use the Park & Ride service since it launched in April 2014.
In recognition of the milestone, Joanne was the lucky winner of passes to Portsmouth's best attractions: The D-Day Story, the Historic Dockyard and the Emirates Spinnaker Tower. Joanne also receives a Park & Ride smartcard to use over the next two years, so she can continue to travel into the city with ease.
Joanne said. "We have been using the Park & Ride since our friends recommended it to us. We used to drive to the seafront and park in the D-Day car park, but now we always use the Park & Ride because it is so much easier and cheaper than driving into the city."
Cllr Lynne Stagg, Portsmouth's Cabinet Member for Traffic and Transport, said. "I am thrilled we have reached one million Park & Ride customers. There is a real appetite for the Park & Ride in Portsmouth, especially at weekends and during the holidays when we welcome a high number of visitors to the city. In our fourth year we have launched a new university service, and we look forward to continuing to develop this much-needed service."
The first Park and Ride bus departed the M275 terminal on Saturday 5 April 2014 and during its opening week welcomed more than 7,000 customers. On average the service sees 4,500 passengers a week and 18,500 a month. August 2018 was the busiest month to date with over 40,000 passengers choosing Park and Ride to travel in to the city.
Conveniently located on the M275 entrance to the city, the Park and Ride is open seven days a week, 363 days a year, with stops for Portsmouth International Port, Charles Dickens Birthplace, the city centre, and The Hard for the Historic Dockyard and Gunwharf Quays. A new PR2 route was launched in September, which runs every 30 minutes and serves the city centre, Guildhall Square and university buildings.
By parking their cars in the car park and using the Park & Ride bus to travel into the city, passengers have helped save over 1,000 metric tonnes of CO2 and almost three million vehicle miles: that's equivalent to six trips to the moon and back!
Park & Ride to the University of Portsmouth with new PR2 route
Portsmouth's Park & Ride is introducing a new route taking in Portsmouth and Southsea train station and the centre of the university campus.
From Monday 10 September in time for the start of the new university term, the Park & Ride will run two services: PR1 will run the usual route from the terminal down to the Hard Interchange, while the brand new route PR2 will accommodate the university area of the city.
Running every half hour from the M275 Park & Ride terminal, the PR2 bus will travel to Commercial Road (stand B) and the civic offices (stand M on Isambard Brunel Road) before stopping on Winston Churchill Avenue and Cambridge Road for university buildings.
Cllr Lynne Stagg, Portsmouth's Traffic and Transportation Cabinet Member, welcomes the new service and said. "We are constantly looking at how we can reduce the number of vehicles travelling into the city as a way of improving local air quality and reducing congestion. The new service will benefit university staff and students, and is even more convenient for those working in the Guildhall area of Portsmouth. Running on the hour, every half hour, from the Park & Ride terminal the new service will enable those travelling to the city centre and university to do so quickly and easily and I hope many will take advantage of this convenient service."
Graham Galbraith, Vice-Chancellor University of Portsmouth said. "We are pleased the new route will provide our staff and students with a convenient and sustainable way of travelling to work and study. The frequent service provides a quick route into the heart of the campus and supports us in reducing our environmental impact on the city."
The PR2 service will run from 7am until 8pm Monday to Friday only. The last bus from Cambridge Road will be at 7.44pm. Daily tickets are charged at the same rate as the usual service, £4 per car (of up to five people travelling together) and all Park & Ride smartcard products are valid. Keep checking this website for more information.
Could you be Park & Ride's one millionth customer?
We are fast approaching our one millionth Park and Ride customer. We can't say exactly when the lucky passenger will set foot on a Park & Ride bus, but according to our estimations it'll be soon!
The lucky customer will win an abundance of prizes including a Park and Ride smartcard, a family pass to the D-Day story and more!
For a chance of winning, jump on board this summer. With plenty of places to visit in Portsmouth there are lots of opportunities to use the Park and Ride.
Could your next trip to the city centre, the Historic Dockyard, Mary Rose Museum, Gunwharf Quays or the Spinnaker Tower make you our millionth customer?
Happy Birthday Park & Ride
Portsmouth’s Park and Ride is four years old today (5 April).
The first Park and Ride bus departed the M275 terminal on Saturday 5 April 2014 and during its opening week welcomed more than 7,000 customers.
Over the past four years an impressive 870,000 people have used the service and almost half a million cars have parked in the car park. This summer the service hopes to celebrate its one millionth customer.
On average the service sees 4,000 passengers a week and 17,000 a month. August 2017 was the busiest month to date with over 30,000 passengers choosing Park and Ride to travel in to the city.
Conveniently located on the M275 entrance to the city, the Park and Ride is open seven days a week with stops for Portsmouth International Port, Charles Dickens birthplace, the city centre, and The Hard for the Historic Dockyard and Gunwharf Quays.
By parking their cars in the car park and using the Park and Ride bus to travel into the city, passengers have helped save over 1,000 metric tonnes of CO2.
Portsmouth City Council launched the Park and Ride service in response to the increasing number of visitors to the city generated by recent redevelopments. Park and Ride provides a sustainable option for visitors, as well as for commuters and the many major events in the city.