Stagecoach bus route X5

X5
Plaxton Elite bodied Volvo B11R at Bedford bus station in January 2015
Overview
Operator	Stagecoach in Bedford
Garage	Bedford
Vehicle	Volvo B9R (2009-2014) Volvo B11R (2015-present)
Predecessors	Stagecoach United Counties
Route
Start	Gloucester Green bus station, Oxford
Via	Bicester, Buckingham, Milton Keynes, Milton Keynes Coachway, Bedford, St Neots
End	Parkside, Cambridge
Length	85 miles (137 km)
Service
Level	Daily
Frequency	30

Stagecoach bus route X5 is an inter-urban bus service linking Oxford and Cambridge via Bicester, Buckingham, Milton Keynes, Bedford and St Neots. The route started in 1995 with an hourly service which was increased to half-hourly in 2005; new vehicles were introduced in 2009 and again in 2015. It operates with a 30-minute frequency for much of the day. Vehicles advertise free WiFi access, air conditioning and leather seats and are wheelchair accessible. The route carried 500,000 users in 2008; passenger numbers have grown by 150% between 2004 and 2009, leading to some problems with overcrowding. As of 2014, according to Stagecoach East's Managing Director, Andy Campbell, the route carries on average 1.3 million passengers annually. It is operated by the group's Stagecoach in Bedford division.

Route X5 was launched in September 1995. It operated hourly and provided a number of new links between towns which had not previously been connected by bus or rail services. It was initially branded as Varsity, a reference to a pre-World War II service between Oxford and Cambridge via Luton, and to the Varsity Line, a railway route between the university cities closed in 1967. The western part of the route replaced an infrequent Stagecoach United Counties service between Oxford and Bedford. The route was initially operated with by ex Wallace Arnold Plaxton Premiere Volvo B10Ms.

The route remained largely unchanged until August 2004, when it was diverted via Roxton and Wyboston to replace withdrawn local services. Further changes around the same time saw the X5 diverted to serve Eaton Socon and St Neots town centres rather than serving the towns via a stop on the A421 bypass road, thereby adding to the journey time between Bedford and Cambridge. However, evening journeys were sped up by avoiding Eltisley, which was instead covered by another route.