Cheshire East Council has recently undertaken a review of the subsidised bus network to enable them to save over £1.5m a year.
As part of the medium term budget plan for the Council, a saving target of £1.576m from the supported bus budget is proposed to commence from 1st April 2018. In order to achieve this level of saving a review of the network has been undertaken to assess whether these supported services are best meeting the needs of residents and whether network adjustments can be made to save money.
As a result the proposal is to reduce the 88 Knutsford to Wilmslow to Altrincham bus from a half hourly to an hourly service. The current service is supported by CEC, or other neighbouring authorities.
In a report prepared for the Environment and Regeneration Overview and Scrutiny Committee meeting tomorrow (Thursday 4th May) the rationale for changes to this service is stated as "Within Cheshire East the service provides access to a number of health, education, employment and recreational facilities. The site also serves a number of Local Plan development sites and links into interchanges. The route currently operates with a relatively low level of subsidy per passenger and carries a large number of passengers."
The proposal is for the current 88 service between Altrincham and Knutsford to be reduced to hourly frequency, with all journeys serving Morley Green (currently Morley Green is served every hour rather than half hourly like Bank Square and Wilmslow Rail Station).
The Environment and Regeneration Overview and Scrutiny Committee will discuss the revised network proposals for public consultation on Thursday, 4th May, ahead of the discussion at Cabinet on 9th May.
The 2017/18 supported bus service budget is £3.641m. The proposals would enable savings of £1.576m to be made in 2018/19 so the supported bus service budget could be reduced to £2.065m.
If approved by Cabinet, the proposals will go forward for a 10 week period of public consultation commencing in late May 2017. This consultation will be targeted at both bus users and non bus users and the outcomes from the consultation will inform a recommendation to Cabinet in autumn 2017.
The proposals also include no longer supporting Sunday services of the 130 Macclesfield to Wilmslow to Manchester - the weekday daytime services are provided commercially - and no longer supporting the 200 Wilmslow to Manchester Airport service.
The report states the following as the rationale for changes to the service - "This service currently runs at a relatively high level of subsidy per passenger due to low volumes of passengers using the service. The service provides a link between Wilmslow, Styal and Manchester Airport between which rail alternatives are available."
Comments
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The real loss is the 130 whose predecessors ran every ten minutes until 10.50pm.
Now we have nothing but polluting cars. A step backwards methinks.
In late December last year I was waiting for a bus there and got talking to a man in a suit (and yellow jacket) and a man in boots and working clothes (and a yellow jacket). They were ‘measuring up’ for replacement of the shelter. Why a ‘boss’ had to be present I don’t know, and why measurements were required I don’t know, as the tarmac covered holes in the pavement where the previous shelter had been located were clearly visible. Boss man informed me the shelter should be replaced ‘early in the new year if not sooner’.
Some minutes later a second Cheshire East van drew up, and two workers in yellow jackets got out. After chewing the fat with the first two Cheshire East representatives, they rummaged in the van and produced an aerosol can of yellow paint with which they sprayed crosses on the four tarmac patches covering the holes left by removal of he original shelter. After more chin-wagging, they drove off.
The bus arrived and I left boss man and his worker still surveying the site.
And the shelter has STILL not been replaced!
So, no result, we get soaked waiting for the bus, and a depressing display of over-manning. Perhaps if Cheshire East operated with even a modicum of efficiency they might find they had the funds to improve public services, not cut them!
It also provides a connection to Knutsford, Wilmslow Altrincham rail stations, an improving Altrincham market and 3 varied shopping centres.
I would not mind an hourly service if times can be assured. This may require installation of wireless sign boards at each bus stop.
This thread is about bus routes and bus stops.
At least 94% of bus routes are run commercially. Very few are subsidised by CEC and a public consultation has been announced on those remaining.
Destroyed bus shelters should be replaced; those belonging to CEC by CEC and those belonging to advertising companies by those companies. If repair/replacement is taking too long then please contact your local CEC cllr.
The Highways service was contracted out by CCC to the Bam Nuttall company and the contract expired after CCC ceased. CEC went through the full OJEU procedure and awarded the contract to the Ringway Jacobs company. So everything to do with CEC.
I made these facts very clear and am at a loss as to why Pete Taylor seems not to understand.
No wonder Cheshire East have to cut back on public services such as bus services if they operate in such an inefficient manner.
By the way, those yellow paint marks have now worn off the pavement, so long has it been since that little scenario was played out for me. Perhaps it needs to be repeated?
130 now finishes at around 5. Useless for commuting. Same is threatened for the 38 Macclesfield to Crewe. We moved to Gawsworth for the availability of evening journeys. All now to go.