Joy at reprieve for rural bus service
BUS passengers are delighted at plans to save a rural bus services from reaching the end of the road.
Fears were raised in January that four services could stop running at the end of this month after Stagecoach announced plans to drop its contract with North Lincolnshire Council.
-
From left passengers Marjorie Powell, Garry Davies and James Powell are just some of the many residents who would have been left stranded if the bus services had been terminated.
The services that would have been affected included: the 450 Grimsby, Barton and Brigg service, the number 10 bus which links Scunthorpe, Frodingham, Lakeside and Ashby, the 150 serving East Halton and Grimsby and the 327 serving Scunthorpe and Dragonby.
Marjorie Powell, 86, of Bonby, said: "This is wonderful news. I know a lot of people who will be over the moon with this news."
Mrs Powell and her husband James, 89, rely on the bus to get them to Brigg Town centre each week as they do not drive.
She said: "Everyone has been wondering what is going to happen.
"I am very pleased to hear the service will be kept, as we do all our shopping and banking in Brigg.
"We rely on the buses."
As reported, the announcement to cut the service was made after the authority revealed it was to cut the rate it pays for free travel for over 60s and disabled passholders.
But just weeks before the service was due to be dropped, the authority and the bus company have come up with a solution to the problem.
For the full story, buy today's Scunthorpe Telegraph.
3 Comments
by Contax, Brigg
Monday, March 08 2010, 7:47PM
“Nu Liebore should have thought about the cost before handing out free national bus passes, bus passes should be for local use only to get these people to local towns for shopping, each trip should be charged a small contribution even if only 20p, travel at peak times should be full fare. This worked great for many years in West Yorkshire and many other areas, this should have been extended to the whole of the UK but Nu Liebore knew better with their great give away of being allowed to use the pass nationwide for free holiday trips. Now we find it is unafordable like every other idea they have come up with. I have never used my bus pass as I use my car but one never knows what the future may bring so I support bus services for all villages and a local county free bus pass. I once read in this paper before Nu Liebore made bus pass national that Lincolnshire, N.E. Lincolnshire and N. Lincolnshire were getting together to allow the pass to be used in just these 3 counties, that was a good idea.”
by Eden and Charlotte, Vale of Ancholme
Monday, March 08 2010, 3:15PM
“We both go to out of our catchment area schools and have to catch the 450 to get to school everyday and are delighted that this bus is not being cancelled! We're in year 11 and cancelling this bus would have meant us finding it very hard or very expensive to get to school :D”
by A. Romantic, Low Villages
Monday, March 08 2010, 11:41AM
“Did anyone notice the irony in this article and the small story underneath about the closure of the village shops and post offices. Here we two people in their 80's doing ALL their shopping and banking in Brigg, when they have a village shop and post office 50 yards away. No wonder village shops are closing at the rate they are.”