LIVERPOOL'S back-of-beyond Baltic Quarter has been connected to the outside world again - by a bus circular running every 12 minutes.
It will make life easier for people, more used to heading by foot or bike, to the fast growing cultural enclave emerging from the one-time south docks warehouses.
A new-look CityLink service (download the full timetable and route here has been relaunched by Merseytravel in time for the International Business Festival which, it is predicted, will bring thousands of visitors to Liverpool.
The service links the Pier Head, Liverpool One, Echo Arena, Jamaica Street, Chinatown, the cathedrals and the museums and galleries on a user-friendly hop-on bus until around 8pm.
Unlike Manchester, where the city centre circular buses are free, passengers on CityLink will still have to pay: £1.30 for a single journey or £3 for a day-long ticket*.
City Link Bus Route And Timetable. Click to make big and readable
The new bus livery has been designed to reflect what Liverpool has to offer in terms of attractions, shopping and culture.
Merseytravel says CityLink is aimed at tourists and people using the city’s leisure and business facilities, including conferences, exhibitions and local attractions. But it will be welcomed particularly be those doing business in the Baltic Quarter and residents of the south docks – another long haul.
The service can be accessed from a range of key arrival points like Lime Street Station, Dale Street (for Northern and Wirral Line Moorfields commuters) , Queen Square bus terminal, the Mersey ferries and the cruise liner terminal.
Cllr Ron Abbey, Merseytravel’s “lead member for bus”, said: “CityLink is perfect for people wanting to make the day their own without a tour guide. Just buy a day ticket and hop on and off to your heart’s content.”
It is hoped the CityLink service will play a key role to the “visitor experience”, supporting high profile events in the city such as IFB 2014.
The festival is the largest global concentration of business events during
2014. Running across seven weeks from June 9, it will attract business delegates and trade intermediaries from around the world. The IFB Hub will be based at Merseytravel’s headquarters at One Mann Island.
*Children pay 50p for a single journey or £1.50 for a day ticket. Family tickets (£3 per journey or £7.50 for a day ticket) are also available. Concessionary tickets are accepted on the CityLink buses.
