OKEHAMPTON students are to benefit from a new, dedicated bus service to Exeter College. The new direct route, which is promised to be 'fast and reliable', is due to be piloted from September, at the start of the new academic year. It will pick up students from West Street at 8am each weekday during term time and take them directly to Exeter College's main Hele Road site by 8.45am. The return service will leave the college at 4.45pm after the end of lectures. The college is currently in the process of agreeing a contract with a bus company to launch the service. Exeter College business and marketing director Chris Lorimer said the new route had been set up because the college had realised that lack of transport had been a 'major barrier' to students attending the college from the Okehampton area. He added that there had already been 'tremendous interest' in the scheme. The buses will be subsidised by the college and Devon County Council, and the same arrangement that is currently in place for student travel will apply to them — with students paying around £290 for an annual bus pass. Initially, the service will only be offered to first year students, but it is hoped the pilot scheme will eventually be rolled out to allow any students at the college to use the service. Letters have gone out to 40 Okehampton students who have already expressed interest in the new bus service, requesting a £30 deposit to secure a place. The payment will go towards the cost of the students' normal bus pass. Christian Shackleton, 16, from Leeze Park in Okehampton, wants to study catering at Exeter College. The Okehampton College student said: 'Having this bus service will be much more convenient. It is a big help.' Christian's mother, Jeanette, said: 'The lack of transport at the moment does put people off. I think this will encourage a lot more students to go to Exeter College.' Jessica Letheren, 15, from Hatherleigh, has applied for a place at Exeter College and has already signed up for the Okehampton bus. Jessica, currently a student at Crediton's Queen Elizabeth Community College, said: 'I want to go to Exeter College to do catering but I was a bit worried about how I would get there. There is a bus but it leaves Okehampton at 6.50am and takes an hour and a bit to get into Exeter.' Some students may be eligible for financial assistance for travel through the Learner Support Fund. For details, call the college on 01392 205449, and for more information about the bus — or to book a place — call Jan Grant on 01392 205957.
