Step inside the world of Ring & Ride with Go North Devon

The start of the year has brought a flurry of activity to Go North Devon’s Ring & Ride service with more people choosing to get out and about on the Ring and Ride minibus for shopping and social trips.

Despite the unpredictable weather that the tail end of winter brings, the Go minibus has been filled with the chatter and laughter of both regular and new passengers on their weekly or fortnightly trips.

The Ring & Ride is more than just a minibus service to go to a supermarket or town centre, it allows the passengers to meet up with people and form new friendships.

Anne Einchcomb from Fremington has been a regular passenger for many years and says she 'looks forward to meeting all the passengers as they always have a chat and a good laugh, and they are such a friendly bunch'.

If you’re a little apprehensive about using the Ring & Ride for the first time there’s no need to worry, as you’ll be in safe hand with Terry the long-established Ring & Ride driver.

Terry goes above and beyond to help put his passengers at ease. He will be the first to meet you at your front door and can offer assistance as you board the minibus, as well as helping you to return safely home with your shopping bags full of goodies.

Terry has been part of The Go North Devon Team for 24 years and says his job 'gives him great satisfaction in knowing that he is helping people who would otherwise find it difficult to get out to do their shopping and visit different places'.

Terry has a great rapport with his passengers, as shown by another comment from Anne, who said: “I always look forward to meeting Terry as he is so friendly, always smiling and very helpful.”

The Ring & Ride service is for people of any age who have problems accessing services and local facilities due to disability (physical or sensory), ill health, frailty, or for those who are rurally isolated due to a lack of private or public transport.

For more information and minibus timetables, please visit www.gonorthdevon.co.uk or call 01271 328866. The Go North Devon phone line is open from Monday to Friday, 9am to 2.20pm.