A new bus service has started to provide a direct link to Bradford's hospitals for hundreds of elderly and disabled people in the Aire Valley.

Campaigners have been fighting for months for the introduction of a service to put an end to the daily struggles of those with mobility problems.

Before its introduction, Shipley residents had to catch two buses to get from Shipley to Bradford Royal Infirmary - often travelling for more than an hour each way.

But the new First 629 service creates the first direct link to the BRI for patients and visitors, dramatically cutting journey times and improving passenger safety, say passengers.

It also provides a bus link between Shipley and Heaton, something the Heaton Township Association have been campaigning for over the last five years.

Denise Warwick, 49, of Owlet Road, Windhill, was one of the first passengers to get on the bus after it left Shipley's Market Square.

Mrs Warwick, who uses crutches after losing three toes to diabetes, said: "Getting this service up and running is a great achievement. I generally go to the BRI or St Luke's Hospital once a week."

The service runs from Crag Road and Shipley Market Place and travels via Bradford Road, Keighley Road and Heaton to BRI.

It runs every hour, Monday to Saturday throughout the day.

As reported in the Telegraph & Argus, members of the Bradford Teaching Hospitals Patient and Public Involvement Forum (PPI) started a campaign for the service in September after surveys revealed access to the hospital was causing huge inconvenience to vulnerable people.

Since then, they have been working closely with Bradford councillors and Metro - the operating arm of the West Yorkshire Passenger Transport Authority - to make the plans a reality.

Jenny Scott, chairman of the PPI forum, said: "It is great that in such a short space of time, everybody involved has managed to get this running. It will be much better for a lot of people."