A special birthday cake was made and iced party buns were offered to freecitybus passengers, to mark the occasion.

Metro Chairman, Cllr Ryk Downes said: "By August 2009, over ¾ million passenger journeys had been made on the freecitybus, which has opened up a whole new way to get around the city, not only for commuters but also for visiting shoppers."

"The invaluable support of Bradford College, Sovereign Health Care and the University of Bradford for the service has helped Metro and Bradford Council ensure the service's success."

Success from day one

"The service has been a fantastic and popular success from day one," said Cllr Anne Hawkesworth. "Connecting key locations around the city centre and linking with both rail stations and the Interchange as it does, freecitybus has made it fast, easy and reliable for people to get to their destinations and has helped encourage them to leave their cars at home."

Bradford College Project Sponsor, Peter Steward said: "We are very pleased to support the service. It complements the College's Green Travel Plan, which is designed to encourage sustainable travel choices for our staff and students and ensure that travel to and from college is undertaken in an environmentally responsible manner."

Sovereign Health Care's head of marketing and business growth, Caroline Cundey said: "Sovereign Health Care has operated in Bradford since 1873 and seen many changes in the city. We are delighted to support the freecitybus - it is an excellent resource and a real step in the right direction for the people and visitors of Bradford."

University of Bradford Travel Planner, Ben Tongue said: "Supporting the freecitybus and enabling it to be the successful service it is today has helped us immensely in getting our staff and students around the city and to and from the University of Bradford. The University of Bradford stop on Great Horton Road is the second most popular stop and is a great help in reducing our travel related emissions as part of our Ecoversity programme."

Bradford freecitybuses run every 10 minutes, between 7am and 7pm Monday to Friday and from 8.30am to 5.30pm on Saturdays. There are 14 stops on its three-mile route, including Bradford Interchange, Forster Square station, retail parks, Oastler Centre, Centenary Square, National Media Museum, Bradford College and the University of Bradford.

The buses can carry 46 passengers and are fully accessible, with dedicated space for wheelchair and pushchair users.

More about freecitybus services