A bus service has been saved, giving thousands of people in North Yate and Iron Acton a link with Bristol again.

It will mean the X27 will continue to run for the next six months.

And a campaign will be launched to persuade more people to use the service to make it pay its way.

Bus operator First had announced it was withdrawing the commercially-run X27 that operates between Yate and Bristol. The firm said the service was no longer viable, with income not even covering operating costs.

But the company will continue to run the bus now that South Gloucestershire Council has agreed to subsidise it.

The service had been set to end on May 9, but from May 10 it will become a supported service, running hourly from Mondays to Saturdays between Yate shopping centre and Bristol city centre. Councillors said they would review the service at the end of the six month trial to decide its future.

A decision on a long-term solution, however, could be complicated by Bristol City Council's plans to withdraw its funding for evening, Sunday and Bank Holiday journeys on two services that run from Bristol to Downend and Staple Hill.

The proposals for services five and seven are currently out for consultation but if they go ahead, South Gloucestershire might have to consider if it can step in to help keep a service running.

Brian Allinson, South Gloucestershire's cabinet member for transport, said: "The council is very aware of how important the X27 bus service is to residents along its route, particularly those travelling to work and education.

"We tested the market to see if any other bus company would operate the service on a commercial basis but the only interest we had was for a subsidised service.

"Of the bids we received, First's was by far the lowest and offers the best value to council tax payers."

Residents and passengers in Yate and Iron Acton reacted angrily to the announcement that they could lose the X27, effectively denying them any daytime bus services.

The replacement service will keep the X27 name and follow the existing route through North Yate, Iron Acton, Winterbourne and Hambrook to Bristol.

But instead of terminating at the Bristol bus station, it will run into the heart of Bristol with stops at Anchor Road, near Millennium Square, Bond Street (for Cabot Circus), The Haymarket and St Augustine's Parade. That should help those passengers travelling to places in the College Green and Harbourside areas.

In Yate the service will no longer operate a loop through South Yate as bus services 342 and X42 provide alternatives.