Wells buses – one in, one out
For several weeks there has been speculation that First Group would withdraw the 173 service from Wells to Bath.
It has now been confirmed that the service is to be retained. This follows a lot of local pressure with the bus service being a lifeline for communities such as Chilcompton and Gurney Slade that would otherwise have no public transport.
This follows the June changes, reported in The Leveller, where other bus services to Wells were cut. The 29 from Taunton now stops at Glastonbury. The 75 from Bridgwater to Wells was cut from 7 a day to just one a day.
But if local pressure has helped to save the 173, First have simply swung the axe elsewhere instead. The 126 service from Wells to Weston super mare has been withdrawn instead. For a large community such as Wells, with no rail access, to remove public transport on this scale seems incomprehensible. It leaves people isolated, and pushes them towards using cars. Which runs against government policy at all levels of government.
This leaves a whole chain of villages with little public transport. The roads remain poor compared to
other parts of the country and there have been no rail links for years. People without cars are going to be very isolated. Health services are sparse and how will kids get to school. This goes against the idea of levelling up completely.
They are meant to be providing a service not profiteering. Scandalous