Bus service cuts are on the cards

The cash squeeze, which threatens to create an 800,000 funding gap on the county's bus network, was revealed at a meeting of the environmental services select committee in Chichester.

County councillors were told that this had mainly been created by a reduced amount of money from outside sources, including Government grants and contributions from developers under planning agreements, coupled with inflationary pressures on public transport.

The committee was told that Cllr Tex Pemberton, the county cabinet member for highways and transport, was planning to earmark some 300,000 from the county's contingency funds to avoid the need for even bigger cutbacks.

It was revealed that the number of bus miles travelled in West Sussex had risen from 7m in 1989 to more than 12m, with the number of passengers now approaching 19m a year.

The committee agreed to recommend Cllr Pemberton to withdraw financial support from a list of services in the county, as well as reducing the hours of operation on some supported Sunday services. But it will ask him to look again at proposals to stop support for the 604 service from Pound Hill to Maidenbower, and also at a proposal to cut evening Sunday services to Gatwick.

Cllr Pemberton will be urged to look at the possibility of saving Sunday evening services on the 55 route from Tangmere to Chichester, after Cllr Mike Hall said it was used by people visiting St Richard's Hospital.

Kieran Stigant, director for environment and development, said the reason the matter was on the agenda was that if changes to the network were to be made, notice had to be given to the operators. 'We know some of these will be contentious,' he admitted.

Cllr Peter Evans said he was disappointed the county was having to do this, but he understood the budget pressures. It was happening at a time when they were going down the route of providing free transport for older people and increased subsidies to encourage young people to travel on the bus.

Cllr Carson Albury said it was unfortunate the county was having to do this at the same time as some train services were being taken away by rail operators. The county was supposed to be promoting more routes for buses and trains, for '˜green' purposes.

Cllr Nigel Dennis said reductions in Sunday services could have an impact on tourism in the county, because this was the main day for people to go out into the countryside.

Cllr Phillip Coote said there seemed to be a mindset among public transport operators that as soon as they started a new service everyone would jump on to it.'They do virtually no marketing,' he declared. 'I know of no other business which produces something, and then doesn't market it.

'Marketing is non-existent.'

Cllr Coote said the way bus operators looked after their vehicles was abysmal. He saw three Fastway buses recently. One was bashed about, they were filthy dirty, and in one of them the driver was smoking.

'If operators expect people to travel on their buses, then they have to look to marketing, and look to the presentation of their product, as well as at cleanliness and the way buses are driven,' he said.

'Then people will travel in them.'