A BUS company is calling on visitors and residents to use or lose services as a new Monday to Saturday bus is introduced in Swaledale.

The new Little White Bus service will be launched on April 13, bringing back through buses between Upper Swaledale, and Richmond via Reeth.

It will also connect with Tesco at Catterick for shopping, and visitors can use the bus for walking through Swaledale. Connections are also available to Darlington.

On Sundays and Bank Holiday Mondays from May 3 the Northern Dalesman bus will be running from Middlesbrough, Stockton and Darlington to Richmond, Reeth, Gunnerside and Muker then over the Buttertubs Pass to Hawes.

A spokesman for Dalesbus said: “This is the most scenic bus service in England so we are asking people to give it a try.

"It is running thanks to financial support from the Yorkshire Dales National Park Sustainable Development Fund, the Friends of the Settle Carlisle Line and Northern Rail and the enthusiastic volunteers of the Dales and Bowland Community.

“We are asking everyone to get out into the Dales using this service - without support it will wither away.”

Some extra journeys are also being operated on the 159 Richmond, Leyburn, Ripon bus service, while a revised bus service in Wensleydale is expected to be introduced on May 11. For more information go to www.dalesbus.org