Spreading festive cheer in Sunderland with free Sunday morning bus travel

Go North East and Stagecoach North East are giving visitors travelling into Sunderland by bus on Sunday mornings from now until Christmas, a festive gift, free transport into the city before 11am.

To coincide with Sunderland’s official Christmas lights switch-on with popstar Pixie Lott on Thursday 23 November, the initiative runs from Sunday 26 November until Sunday 24 December. Go North East and Stagecoach hope the free travel incentive will encourage more visitors to the city’s retail outlets and festive attractions, including the Winter market and Santa’s Grotto at The Bridges.

Kevin Carr, managing director at Go North East, said: “As momentum builds for the big day, we wanted to help lighten the load for those feeling the festive pinch, by offering free Sunday morning travel. With lots of great stores and family events in Sunderland, choosing the bus to get there is not only easy but also very economical, thanks to our free Sunday morning offer.”

Steve Walker, managing director at Stagecoach North East, added: "This is a great opportunity for people to enjoy all that Sunderland city centre has to offer in the build up to Christmas, with lots of festive fun and events for all the family every weekend.

"Getting around quickly and cheaply can be a challenge during the busy Christmas period and so we are delighted to offer this free service for our customers to help make the most of the seasonal shopping around the city in the lead up to the big day.

"We’re always looking for new ways to benefit the community and improve our passengers’ travel experience, and this is just one example of our enhanced offerings this Christmas.” 

Free journeys are available before 11am on Sundays between Sunday 26 November and Sunday 24 December when starting your journey in the Sunderland Saver area.