Coton Hill bus service will be axed
Tuesday 13th July 2010, 12:58PM BST.
A community bus service used by the elderly and families on a Shrewsbury housing estate will be axed after councillors said they could not afford to bankroll it.
The number seven bus to Coton Hill was cancelled by Arriva last year. But, after a public protest meeting, Shropshire Council agreed to provide £10,000 to run an interim service.
However, this cash will run out in November and, at a meeting of the Severn Loop Local Joint Committee last night, councillors refused to pay any more.
The decision was today criticised by residents who claim it is a vital service and must be retained.
Councillor Dr Maxwell Winchester, a member of the committee who was unable to attend last night’s meeting, today said he would also be investigating the decision as his fellow panel members may have acted “outside their powers”.
He said that, as he and several officers were unable to attend the meeting, the decision may not stand.
Councillor Mansel Williams, from the committee, said the bus was no longer feasible.
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ok I get it – the old folk need to find the money, and in the real world, havent got it. So that unfeasable bus which not only enabled the old folk to go shopping – but also got them out of their houses, got them socialising, kept their mental health good, made them and their friends notice health problems and so on – thus saving the local NHS lots of money because they werent using its facilities. Easy to see or not?
Its about time governments/councils began to factor-in the real value of socialising (to society in £-terms) when people are retired; a cheap subsidised bus, a cheap subsidised course, a night out at a old folks evening and so on has got to be much mroe economic than bed-blocking and drugs to stave off the effects of life in front of the TV.
Lest ye end up old and poor ye councillors, lose a consultant now and engage the brains.
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as a local bus driver who regularly used to do number 7s its hardly suprising its being withdrawn. how many people use it…..not many, but where are all the people who were in uproar of it being axed???? 500 signatures on a petition!!!! so where are the 500 people using this bus. the service is a complete waste of public money. saturday do you know how many people used it ALL DAY???? 16. of those 15 were on oap passes and one fare paying passenger. what makes them think they deserve a bus service, there are other places in town without a bus service, but you dont hear any complaints from those certain areas do you
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Hardly a suprise. Its a big waste of public money for the amount of people it carries. Dial A Ride would be a much better option or ask Boultons after all they all rave about how good the service was that Boultons gave them. Now I wonder why Boultons gave it up…..
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