News

Hop along and hop on board!

‘Hopper’ Bus Service returns to Dedham Vale

From Saturday 3rd July 2010, the Dedham Vale 'Hopper' Bus will be operating a circuit from Manningtree Railway Station stopping at various attractions and local facilities in the Dedham Vale Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.

The service has been supported by the Heritage Lottery Fund through the 'Managing a Masterpiece' programme, the National Trust and the Dedham Vale AONB and Stour Valley Project.  The service (No. 745) is run by Hadleigh Community Transport Group and will operate five days per week from 3 July to 26 September 2010 (on Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Saturdays and Sundays).  It will set off hourly from Manningtree Railway Station between 09.40 am and 17.25 pm.

The service will be free for the first four weeks, after this a £2 day ticket will allow passengers to hop on and hop off the bus as they please.  The bus will follow an anticlockwise, circular route from Manningtree Station via Flatford, East Bergholt, Stratford St Mary, Dedham, Lawford and Manningtree.

The aim of the service is to provide support through better public transport facilities for the local community and encourage visitors to the Dedham Vale to make use of the sustainable transport links.  The service has been designed to connect with the rail services from Liverpool Street Station to Manningtree and is also easily accessible from Norwich, Ipswich, Colchester and Harwich.

Adrian Clarke of the National Trust said, "We are delighted to be supporting the Hopper Bus service as we want to encourage people to visit this beautiful area in a sustainable, environmentally friendly way."

Chris Burton, the 'Managing a Masterpiece' scheme manager said, "It's great news that we have secured funding for the bus for the next three years until 2013.  The service was extremely successful during the pilot in 2005.  We have already received some very postive comments from the local community and businesses about the launch of the new service."

For a copy of the timetable - click

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Contact

For further information on the Dedham Vale AONB and Stour Valley Project, please contact Sue Ellis on 01473 264263.

Notes for editors

• The award by the National Heritage Memorial Fund of £910,000 for 62 projects within three programmes over three years is a Stage 2 pass. Delivery will begin on 1 June 2010. Further information on the Heritage Lottery Funds Landscape Partnership Scheme is available at: http://www.hlf.org.uk/HowToApply/programmes/Pages/landscapepartnerships.aspx • The scheme will be overseen by a board made up of representatives from: Babergh District Council, Braintree District Council, Colchester Borough Council, Dedham Vale AONB and Stour Valley Project, Diocese of Chelmsford; Diocese of St Edmundsbury and Ipswich, English Heritage, Environment Agency, Essex County Council, Flatford Mill Field Studies Council, National Trust, Natural England, Otley College, River Stour Trust, St Edmundsbury Borough Council, Suffolk County Council, Tendring District Council, University Campus Suffolk and the University of Essex. • The Stour Valley lies on the Essex/Suffolk border, between Ipswich, Colchester, Haverhill and Newmarket. Its lowland beauty has inspired generations of artists, most famously Thomas Gainsborough, John Constable, Sir Alfred Munnings and John Nash. • The Dedham Vale Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) and Stour Valley Project conserves and enhances the natural beauty of the area. Further information at: http://www.dedhamvalestourvalley.org/ • The Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) enables communities to celebrate, look after and learn more about our diverse heritage. From our great museums and historic buildings, to local parks and beauty spots or recording and celebrating traditions, customs and history, HLF grants open up our nation’s heritage for everyone to enjoy. HLF has supported more than 26,000 projects, allocating over £4 billion across the UK, including including £250 million in the East of England alone. • The Dedham Vale AONB is one of Britain’s finest landscapes. Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONBs) are part of the “family” of UK protected areas that include our National Parks and Heritage Coasts. All receive special protection because of their outstanding landscape quality. • As with many protected landscapes across the country, the Dedham Vale AONB has a mixed rural economy based on agriculture, small business and the tourism sector. The value of the landscape in the tourism sector of the economy is highly significant. A recent study undertaken by East of England Tourism (EET) found that when direct, supplier and income-induced expenditure are added together, business turnover in the Dedham Vale AONB economy (ie. total tourism value) is £39,767,418. Furthermore, in total, it is estimated that 599 full time equivalent jobs are supported by the tourism industry in the Dedham Vale AONB, equating to 841 actual jobs. (Economic Impact of Tourism in the East of England Protected Landscapes, published 2008). • The Dedham Vale AONB and Stour Valley Project seek to champion the environmental and cultural qualities of the Stour Valley.