We were thrilled to hear that community bus service First and Last Mile will return to Eynsham, providing a weekly service to/from Abingdon from 24 November.
First and Last Mile were able to secure funding from Oxfordshire County Council for a weekly service (433) connecting Eynsham with the large Tesco outside Abingdon (close to the junction with A34), and then onwards to Abingdon town centre on request.
The 433 service will operate on a Tuesday. It will leave Eynsham Church at 9.20am, arriving at Tesco at approximately 10.20am. The return journey will leave Abingdon High Street at 12.15pm and Tesco at 12.30pm, arriving back in Eynsham at approximately 1.30pm. (Timetables are available to view at the bottom of this webpage.)
There will also be a short connecting service (440) from South Leigh and Barnard Gate, running via Spareacre Lane and Mill Street in Eynsham. (This is believed to be the first bus service for Barnard Gate in 40 years!).
We encourage residents to try out this new service - it's a useful way to access Tesco for the weekly shop! The more who use the service, the more chance we have of keeping it; under-used routes will not receive ongoing funding. Unfortunately, First and Last Mile discontinued their previous trial service (611 and 618 Saturday service connecting Eynsham and village with Witney) due to a lack of usage.
To find out more about First and Last Mile, visit their website. This community bus service is always looking for volunteers so why not get involved?