Great West Way Travel Magazine | Issue 07

Did you know? If every person in <strong>Great</strong> Britain switched just over one car trip to bus or coach per month each year (13 per year) by 2030 it would create a cumulative reduction of 2 million tons of C02e. Kennet and Avon Canal, and a magnitude of foot and cycle paths. Arrive at any of the <strong>Great</strong> <strong>West</strong> <strong>Way</strong>’s cities by train, and wander on foot to explore at your own speed, or hire a bike for the day to whizz around town seeing all the sights. In Bristol, you can even hop on a bicycle-for-two with Bristol Tandem Hire. If you fancy taking a cycle ride between some of the cities on the <strong>Great</strong> <strong>West</strong> <strong>Way</strong>, the 13-mile Railway Path between Bristol and Bath offers a flat, easy ride away from the roads. The <strong>Great</strong> <strong>West</strong>ern Railway runs throughout the touring route, stopping at cities like Bristol, Bath and London, as well as some of the area’s major towns including Reading, Windsor and Swindon. There are also convenient rail links to nearby cities Salisbury and Gloucester, which are just off the <strong>Great</strong> <strong>West</strong> <strong>Way</strong>. You can use our <strong>Great</strong> <strong>West</strong> <strong>Way</strong> Discoverer pass for unlimited off-peak train and bus travel to make life even easier, with options from £139 for a seven-day pass. Bristol Airport has also been recently recognised for its sustainability efforts, winning the Eco-Innovation Award for the easyJet low emissions initiative – a step towards becoming one of the UK's most sustainable airports. And you can’t get much greener than travelling by horsedrawn boat! The Kennet Horse Boat Company operate from Easter to the end of September, and you can just hop on when they have spare seats – or book a barge by charter. At the east side of the route you can enjoy a delightful electric boat cruise along the River Thames with Pure Boating. Surrounded by abundant beautiful unspoilt scenery 16 <strong>Great</strong><strong>West</strong><strong>Way</strong>.co.uk

“Surrounded by abundant beautiful unspoilt scenery and natural beauty, their fully electric fleet is perfect for spotting the occasional kingfisher or heron, without a noisy, smelly petrol or diesel engine.” Pictured left to right: The Kennet Horse Boat Company horse drawn boat along the Kennet & Avon Canal; Pure Boating's fully electric fleet and natural beauty, their fully electric fleet is perfect for spotting the occasional kingfisher or heron, without a noisy, smelly petrol or diesel engine. Buses are another way to help ease congestion and improve air quality. Just one double decker bus has the potential to take 75 cars off the road. Go South Coast have three fully electric zero emission vehicles collecting visitors from Salisbury Park and Ride sites. Plus, there are multiple coach services between London and Bristol by companies including National Express, Megabus, Stagecoach and Eurolines. You could take in the route on a private coach tour, from the royal sights of Windsor to the charming villages of the Cotswolds – many of these depart from central London. You’ll also find coach connections to other cities and towns along the touring route from London Victoria, including Marlow, Reading, Swindon, Chippenham, Bath and more. Towns, villages and cities Destinations along the route are improving their shopping high streets and popular visitor districts in innovative environmentally conscious ways. Henley have just hosted their Big Green Week event for local businesses to promote their sustainable products – and in an effort towards becoming 100% Net Zero the towns park vehicles are moving across to a greener fuel source of → <strong>Great</strong><strong>West</strong><strong>Way</strong>.co.uk 17