Mar 05 2009
Campaigning Against Bus Service Cuts
Local bus company First York have announced plans to cut services. They are proposing the removal of the evening service after 7.30pm on the number 10 route (Stamford Bridge to Poppleton) which comes through Dunnington, the number 13 route (Copmanthorpe to Monks Cross) and the number 12 route (Haxby to Acomb Park).
I am very disappointed the 
bus company is proposing to cut some of its services for villages on the edge of York, particularly in the evening. People living in these villages without direct access to a car rely heavily on these services to get them in and out of York and will be isolated after 7.30pm. If we are to persuade people to use public transport on a more regular basis to cut down on the ever increasing traffic congestion, it is essential to provide a reliable integrated transport system that can meet everyone’s needs, cutting these services is a backward step and does nothing to help achieve this. This week I attended the Annual Parish meeting in Dunnington, one of the villages to be directly affected by the proposed cuts. It was made perfectly clear to me the strength of feeling against the bus companies decision, these local bus services are a vital life line for rural villages like Dunnington and we must fight to keep them.
I will be meeting with First York to discuss the proposed cuts over the next few days and keep readers informed of my progress.
