Bus information evening 19 April

Due to understandable concern about the future of the 27 and other bus services in our villages, a public information evening will be held on 19 April, 7:30-9PM at the Elin Way Community Centre, Elin Way, Meldreth.

Royston and District Community Transport will be attending, as we are working together to help figure out solutions for people who may be caught out. If you need a lift to the meeting, please let us know.

A petition has been set up for the 27 bus. You can sign it here.

Why are we in this transport mess?

Bus services were denationalized in the 1980s, and most buses are operated by private companies. Councils have no legal obligation to run bus services, however for many years they have stepped in to provide financial back-up to keep bus services running in areas where private companies don’t find a market. These ‘council-subsidized’ bus services are usually skeleton services only, but they do make it possible for many people to get to school, work, doctor’s appointments, to care for relatives and do food shopping, and other essentials.

Over the past several years, council budgets have been slashed – now reaching dramatic proportions as central government turns off the council funding tap. As a result, councils are cutting services which they are not legally obliged to provide, because the funding simply is no longer available.

The 26 and 27 buses have never been subsidized by Cambridgeshire County Council, but are commercial services run by a private company. Stagecoach propose to run an hourly service for the 26, from Royston via Melbourn, Dunsbridge Turnpike Shepreth, Foxton, Harston and Hauxton, and terminating at Trumpington Park and Ride, because they see a potentially profitable service – though they have made it clear that ultimately it depends on enough people actually using the bus.

At the same time, very worryingly, Stagecoach have announced that they are considering withdrawing the 27 service, because they say that not enough people are riding it to make business sense. The loss of the 27 would mean that people in Meldreth, Kneesworth, Bassingbourn, Litlington and the Mordens have no more bus service to Cambridge. People who depend on it would find this disastrous. Stagecoach say they could loop the 26 through Barrington and Haslingfield only – we have asked several times if they would loop through the Mordens, Litlington, Bassingbourn-cum-Kneesworth, Whaddon and Meldreth, but Stagecoach insist there are not enough people riding the bus to make this commercially viable.

The 15, 31, 127 and 128 buses all depend on council subsidies. They are secure for this coming year, thanks to a stay of execution on County Council bus subsidies – but as government support falls away in two years’ time, it is difficult to see where that funding will come from in the future.

Royston and District Community Transport may be able to help, by running an early morning/late afternoon shuttle service to link up with the 26 bus and/or Meldreth Station. This would necessitate hiring a driver, so it would need to be paid for. All to be discussed at the 19 April meeting.

   Leave a comment