Fflecsi

fflecsi
Logo of Fflecsi
Transport for Wales, the national transport authority
ParentTransport for Wales
(Welsh Government)
Founded18 May 2020
LocaleWales, United Kingdom

Principal areas of:

Service area
Service typeDemand-responsive bus services
Hubs
Annual ridership7,000 (Newport; May–Sept 2020)
23,000 (Blaenau Gwent; June–Dec 2022)
Operator
Websitewww.fflecsi.wales Edit this at Wikidata

Fflecsi (stylised fflecsi; Welsh pronunciation: [flɛksi]) is a trial demand-responsive bus service administered by Transport for Wales (TfW) and local authorities, operated by local bus operators across Wales. Pilot trials of the service are conducted across Wales, which included a city-wide trial in Newport until September 2022. The effectiveness of the service is being monitored as full bus services resume in Wales during the COVID-19 pandemic. During the pilots, fflecsi will replace some pre-existing scheduled bus routes in the service areas where it operates.[1] The technology behind the service is made by ViaVan, and the pilot is funded by the Welsh Government, to invest in new approaches to public transport in Wales as part of their Llwybr Newydd strategy.[2] The pilot was included in Welsh Labour's manifesto for the 2021 Senedd election, as part of their plan to increase investment in bus services,[3] and reducing Wales' carbon emissions.[4]

Passengers book and pay for journeys via an app (or telephone call), which then matches passengers travelling between similar points, calculating an ad hoc route to the destinations required within the route's service area. Most routes have a fixed start and end destination. The on-demand bus service scheme is charged with normal bus fares, with provisions for seasonal and pre-purchased tickets, MyTravelpass, and 60+ or disabled concessionary travel card. Payments are taken using either a contactless card or Smartcard, although some services may accept cash payments.

By the beginning of September 2020, fflecsi had recorded over 7,000 journeys on its service since its launch in mid-May 2020, according to the Welsh Government. In September 2020, up to 48% of all journeys were from the Newport service as being the only one at the time primarily operating in a city centre.[5] The Newport pilot service ended on 25 September 2022.[6] Services in rural areas were shown to increase passenger demand when compared to the previous fixed bus operations.[7] From May 2020 to May 2021, it had recorded 50,000 trips[8] on its then seven pilot services across Wales, with four being single bus routes.[9]

  1. ^ "fflecsi | Transport for Wales". trc.cymru. Archived from the original on 7 June 2021. Retrieved 12 June 2021.
  2. ^ "Pembrokeshire bus service Fflecsi moving into top gear as lockdown eases. See details here". Western Telegraph. Retrieved 12 June 2021.
  3. ^ Moving Wales Forward — Welsh Labour Manifesto 2021 (PDF). movingforward.wales: Welsh Labour. 2021. p. 32.
  4. ^ Tourism, Sustainable (8 December 2022). "A Solution for Local Authorities to Develop Sustainable Tourism Transport Links". Business News Wales. Retrieved 26 December 2022.
  5. ^ Welsh Government Annual Report 2020 – Annex September 2019 – September 2020 (PDF). gov.wales: Welsh Government. 2020. p. 68. Archived from the original (PDF) on 16 June 2021. Retrieved 15 June 2021.
  6. ^ "Fflecsi bus scheme ending in Newport after 'successful' trial". South Wales Argus. Retrieved 12 August 2022.
  7. ^ Cite error: The named reference Battery was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  8. ^ "All aboard! How on‑demand public transport is getting back on the road". the Guardian. 11 August 2022. Retrieved 12 August 2022.
  9. ^ "fflecsi Locations". fflecsi.wales. Archived from the original on 9 May 2021. Retrieved 12 August 2022.