Bus services in Ipswich and Suffolk are among the best in the country according to a new survey by the official passenger watchdog.

Both Ipswich Buses and First Suffolk buses achieved 93% overall passenger satisfaction in the survey – only fractionally behind Reading Buses which was top of the table on 94%.

What is more remarkable about their success was that the survey, by Passenger Focus, was carried out between September and December last year when the town’s bus stations were being rebuilt and services were seriously disrupted.

Ipswich Buses’ managing director Malcolm Robson said: “We are really pleased with these results, it demonstrates the efforts the whole team has made over the last 18 months developing Ipswich Buses into a great local transport option.

“However, we will not rest on our laurels as there are still some areas of the survey that have revealed things that we need to work on to bring everything up to the 90% level.

“We will work with our partners on some of these issues – such as the bus waiting areas and we are already putting into place plans to improve our value for money for all customers, with customer numbers up from last year, this is still something we want to keep moving in the right direction.”

He admitted he had been apprehensive when he heard the survey would be carried out while services were facing so much disruption, but was delighted when the results came through: “They have given everyone working here a real boost,” he said.

Managing director of First Eastern Counties David Squire said: “We are thrilled with our score which reflects the hard work and commitment of all my colleagues.

“We’ve got excellent teams in place at our Ipswich and Lowestoft depots who are improving our services and helping encourage more people to travel with First.”