New Forest Community Rail Partnership (CRP) has worked alongside local train operators and other community rail partnerships to launch the ‘West Wight Wanderer’ ticket, offering discounted travel across the Isle of Wight and New Forest National Park.
The ‘West Wight Wanderer’ is a day ranger ticket that offers discounted travel connecting visitors with the Isle of Wight, Lymington, and the New Forest National Park. The tripartite ticket involves the CRP’s partners South Western Railway (SWR), Wightlink, and Southern Vectis.
To help promote this new tourism and leisure rover ticket, New Forest CRP has produced fold-out maps of the promoted areas, which contain a handy QR code to take you straight to buying the ticket online. Posters and pop-up banners with images of the three transport operators are displayed at stations around the South East, all featuring the QR code. Passengers can also purchase tickets from the guard on an SWR service.
New Forest CRP partner, Cyclexperience, is also offering 10% off bike hire at their Brockenhurst Railway Station hub for anyone with a valid rail ticket, allowing visitors to explore the New Forest area on two wheels.
The ‘West Wight Wanderer’ was officially launched at Brockenhurst Railway Station on 5 July by transport partners Phil Dominey, Senior Regional Development Manager from South Western Railway, Sam Woodman, Partnerships Marketing Manager from Wightlink, and Richard Tyldsley, General Manager of Southern Vectis Island Busses and Isle of Wight CRP Chair, as well as Neville Penman, Chair of the New Forest District Council.
Bobby Lock, Community Rail Manager for New Forest and Isle of Wight CRPs, said: “The Isle of Wight CRP, New Forest CRP, and Three Rivers CRP have worked closely together over the years, and when I heard about Three Rivers CRP’s innovative ‘Waterside Wanderer’ ticket, I reached out to the Partnership team to see if our groups could share best practice.
“This has been a great partnership project, working with a range of partners to promote our integrated transport links for tourism, both to and from the Isle of Wight and New Forest.”
Phil Delaney, Wightlink’s Commercial Director, said: “We are delighted to bring people together with the West Wight Wanderer. It’s a perfect day out, combining a scenic rail journey from South Western Railway’s Brockenhurst to Lymington Pier, and a fantastic Wightlink return ferry crossing to Yarmouth, with the chance to explore the beautiful West Wight by Needles Breezer bus and Southern Vectis route seven.”
Richard Tyldsley, General Manager of Southern Vectis Island and Busses and Chair of the Isle of Wight CRP, said: “The West Wight Wanderer is just another example of the CRP’s great initiatives to show how our positive partnership working can successfully deliver an integrated ticket to promote tourism.”
Keep up to date with future news, projects, and events from New Forest CRP via their website.
