Bill Purdue’s traffic news: Planning for the Tour de France

Cycling enthusiasts keen to follow the ‘Grand Depart’ of the Tour de France in Yorkshire or Cambridge, will benefit from 1,350 extra seats to be provided on East Midlands Trains at the time of the event.

These include a special direct service from Sheffield to Cambridge on 6th July to enable fans to travel from the finish line of stage 2 to the starting location of stage 3. The cost of a seat will be £19, but you are advised to book early to avoid disappointment.

If you do plan to travel with your cycle on one of the trains make sure to book your cycle reservation as failure to do so may result in you experiencing delays whilst waiting for a space for a cycle on board the train. For more information go to http://www.eastmidlandstrains.co.uk/tickets-deals/deals-savings/Tour-de-France-2014/.

Train timetables changed in May. The times have changed significantly in some areas due to the first phase of electrifying lines in the North West being complete - so please check all train times before you travel.

Finally on the trains, a new station for Ilkeston should be open by December.

It will be sited between Coronation Road and Millership Way. The new station means that for the first time in more than 40 years passengers will be able to travel to and from Ilkeston directly between Nottingham, Chesterfield and Sheffield, then link to other destinations further afield.

On Nottingham trams, the next stage of the new ticketing arrangements have now been introduced. Tram conductors will no longer sell tickets on board the tram, so you need to buy your ticket at the ticket machines located at every tram stop.

If you have a smart card or concessionary pass, you need to validate it at the machine before boarding the tram. You can also use your trent barton MANGO card to pay for the tram fare. Be warned – anyone found travelling without a valid ticket or smart card could be fined £50!

By the way work on the two tram extensions is going well: On May 28th the track linking Line One of the city’s tram network to the £570m Phase Two extensions was welded into place.

It’s expected that the tram extensions to Clifton and Chilwell will be up and running by the end of the year. For more details and to download a route map of the extension routes, go to www.thetram.net .

On the buses things are relatively quiet at the moment, but residents in parts of Pinxton previously served by the 331 Alfreton to Nottingham service can look forward to a new service 231 at the end of June.

The 231, operated by McEwens, will be a Derbyshire County Council contract service connecting Pinxton and Alfreton and will serve Market Street, High Street and The Croft and will operate via Woodfield Road, Wharf Road, Park Lane and Church Street West. Buses running every hour will operate in the morning and early afternoon Mondays to Saturdays.

Finally because of sewer repairs on Carsic Lane, Sutton, bus stops at Percival Crescent and on Carsic Lane itself will not be served by the trent barton 141 and T M Travel ‘spira’ services between 2nd and 13th June between 8am and 6pm.