A plan to help make the bus network safer and easier to use in the evening is set to be approved by West Midlands councillors.

It means hundreds of extra bus shelters will be fitted with lighting over the coming years – so that passengers waiting for the bus can be seen more clearly.  They will also have enough light to read new improved timetable information.

In the latest move, almost 200 Centro bus shelters are to be fitted with solar-powered lighting.

“Our ultimate aim is for all bus shelters in the West Midlands to be fitted with lighting,” says Cllr Len Clark, lead member for buses on the Passenger Transport Authority, which sets policy for Centro.  “This new shelter initiative means we can make faster progress on passenger comfort and safety in a way that also delivers value for money.”

The solar-powered units have the added advantage that pavements around the shelter will not need to be dug up to install electricity cables and they are cheaper too, according to the report to next Monday’s (9 January) meeting of the PTA’s key committee.

The cost will be £242,000 and will be paid for out of Government funding and the money raised by Centro from bus shelter advertising.  Solar-powered lighting, which recharges its batteries during the day to light the shelter at night, costs £600 less than a mains-powered unit and can save about £100 a year in electricity bills per shelter.