New buses with usb-ports and wi-fi: ”We want to attract more people”
Arriva rents the depot at Bastholmen, on the outskirts of Broby. The company has bought in 30 new gas-driven buses from Scania. 17 are ready to be taken into use, and the rest will be delivered later to the depots in Kristianstad, Broby, Olofström and Sölvesborg.
”We've lost a lot of passengers during the pandemic. Now more and more people have started going by bus again”Martin Frennessen, Arriva's traffic manager
Advice: Facemasks on crowded buses
The government has presented advice to reduce the spread of corona. From 8th December 2021 till 31st January 2022 this is what applies:
More work from home, and adults are recommended to wear a facemask on trains and buses (when it is crowded, when there are a lot of passengers).
Everyone, both adults and children, should keep a safe distance in public environments.
Avoid crowding in restaurants.
If the rate of infection rises, the government is prepared to introduce more restrictions.
All Arriva's buses will have usb-ports where passengers can charge their mobile phones. On the new buses there is wi-fi.
– We've lost a lot of passengers during the pandemic. Now more and more people have started going by bus again. We want to get back the people who used to travel by bus, and to attract more passengers, says Martin Frennessen, Arriva's traffic manager in Kristianstad.
A year ago Arriva took over town and regional traffic in Kristianstad from Transdev.
Route 545, Kistianstad-Osby
Route 545, Kristianstad-Osby.Before the pandemic, route 545 between Kristianstad and Osby reached a total of a million passengers a year. Buses will continue to run every ten minutes at peak periods. And now there will be a bus every 15 minutes in the early afternoon on weekdays.
Bus 545 will no longer go to C4 Shopping on weekdays. The terminus will be at Björkhemsvägen. (The service will operate at weekends, otherwise use bus 1 or 551 to get to C4 Shopping.)
Better connections for 545 to the train in Osby.
Bus stops at Beateberg, Hantverksgatan (Hanaskog) and Stationsvägen (Knislinge) will be taken away, to speed up route 545. Also, road 19 will be reconstructed.