Cyclists will have the opportunity to travel in the comfort of the Solo while their bike is conveyed safely in a trailer capable of carrying 12 bikes towed by the bus. The bus is fitted with a CCTV camera to allow the driver to monitor the loading and unloading of bikes.

The 30-seat bus, which is wheelchair compliant, departs from Inverness Bus Station at 08.50, stopping at Dingwall, Strathpeffer, Contin, Ullapool, Lochinver, Scourie and Kinlochbervie, and arrives back in Inverness at 19.30. It will operate Monday to Saturday during April, May, June, and September and seven days a week during July and August.
  
The service has been made possible by a public-private partnership involving Tim Dearman Coaches, Ardross, which will operate the route, The Highland Council, which provides a contract for the operation of the service, and HITRANS, the strategic transport authority for the Highlands and Islands, providing capital funding of the trailer and part-funding for the new bus.
  
Mr Dearman has been running the service between Inverness and Durness for five years and has introduced the cycle bus in response to demand from his passengers. He said: "Cycling is a growing holiday activity and the scenic North and West Highlands are popular destinations. Our service will be ideal for those people who are heading to the north or to the Western Isles, via Ullapool, or just fancy a day's cycling in the Highlands".

Integration between bike and bus and train will be further bolstered in time for the summer season through three further projects funded by HITRANS and introduced with private sector partners.

With Rapson's Coaches, services between Grantown, Aviemore and Cairngorm Mountain Resort will be upgraded with the introduction of three new buses (two of which will be Solos) capable of carrying bikes on special racks and the installation of a bike rack on an existing bus.

With Murdo MacDonald on the Isle of Skye, the Fiscavaig to Portree service will be upgraded with the introduction of an Optare Solo fitted with a bike rack.

Councilor Charles King, Chairman of HITRANS said of the projects, "I am delighted that HITRANS have funded these innovative projects. We recognise the value of cycling both in terms of the economic benefits derived from cycle tourism and also the obvious health benefits and are pleased that this will open up more of the Highlands and Islands to cyclists."