MORE school buses are being been opened up to the public in Purbeck.

The Purbeck School in Wareham previously had two ‘double-run’ bus services, which picked children up and dropped them off before returning to do the journey again.

While this was more cost-effective than running two separate buses, it meant students could be left waiting for 30 minutes for the bus to return, with the school having to pay to supervise them.

Last September Dorset County Council replaced one of the two double-runs with two services, the 743 and 744, open to both students and the public.

Following this success, the council and school have continued to work together to improve routes.

From the start of the new school term, the remaining double-run will be removed.

In its place, the new service 671 will be opened to the public, offering a school-time journey from Bovington to Wareham, Monday to Friday.

The areas covered by the 743 and 744 routes will be expanded, with new stops added in West Chaldon, Lulworth and Coombe Keynes and different times in Wool.

A further three routes between Swanage and the Purbeck School – 640, 641 and 642 – have also been opened up to the public.

And, on the back of these new open school routes, First has registered a new service 15, which provides a service between Wareham and Weymouth in the middle of the day, with no subsidy from the council.

Cllr Peter Finney, the council’s cabinet member for highways, transport and infrastructure, said: “It is great that we have been able to work with the Purbeck School to open up more routes for the public while better meeting the needs of students.

"As part of our wider strategy for public and school transport throughout Dorset, we are aiming to create a more flexible, efficient network that can help more residents to travel while reducing overall costs.”