A BUS company has announced a shake-up of services as details of its summer timetable are released.

First Dorset, the main bus operator in Weymouth and Portland, says the changes will come into effect on May 24, resulting in one bus service being more reliable and helping to meet ‘increasing demands for travel’ across Dorset.

The main changes include an enhancement of service X53 which will now operate on an hourly basis between Weymouth, Bridport and Lyme Regis.

The X31 service will also be changed in order to improve links between Dorchester South and Axminster stations, meaning the service will no longer call at Weymouth.

General manager at First Dorset, Simon Newport, said: “The change to service X31 has been made in order to maintain its viability following the withdrawal of financial support from Dorset County Council three years ago.

“We did make great efforts to increase the number of people travelling and improve the fares, but unfortunately, the section between Weymouth and Dorchester has not been used sufficiently to enable us to continue running this part of the service. “Customers can however use Service 10 between Weymouth and Dorchester, which runs every 15 minutes during the day and hourly in the evening, with buses every half an hour on Sundays. “The change also means the X31 timetable will be more reliable so that it can always meet trains at Dorchester South and Axminster Stations.

“It has also been linked with service X53 so that buses will be provided every half an hour from Bridport to Lyme Regis in the daytime, making it the best ever level of service along this section of the coast.

“This meets the increasing demands for travel from local customers and tourists alike.”

The X31 service, which will no longer call at Weymouth from May, means customers wanting to travel between Weymouth and Dorchester can instead take service 10 which runs every 15 minutes in the daytime Monday to Saturday.

Customers can change between service X31 and service 10 at the Brewery Square stop when travelling to Weymouth and Trinity Street for journeys to Bridport and beyond.

Service 14 will also offer some direct journeys between Weymouth and Dorchester four times a day in both directions. For more information visit firstgroup.com/ukbus/Dorset