A series of changes to bus services will cost Devon County Council an extra £800,000 on top of its existing multi-million pound subsidies.
Commercial operators, including Stagecoach and some smaller firms, announced various changes this month, meaning some services face alterations or cuts.
But Devon County Council, which oversees transport, said it would put up more than three-quarters of a million pounds, increasing its overall bus subsidy by just 5 per cent. That suggests the authority already spends around £16 million per year to prop up bus services in the county.
Among the changes announced this month was a new service X, procured by Devon County Council and run by Greenslades, to serve Exminster and Matford Brook/Marsh Barton, because Stagecoach had changed its Service B. The council has also amended its Dartline 66 service to provide an alternative for Stagecoach's 6A ( Exeter – Okehampton ) being withdrawn.
Stagecoach said its Service P would receive some financial support from the council to help maintain the timetable, as well as some early morning journeys on Service 39 and Service 18. Stagecoach is also improving the frequency on a host of its services, it said when it announced the changes that are due to take effect on 30 August.
"The council subsidises bus routes that bus providers would otherwise deem unprofitable, and that may otherwise not run," a spokesperson for Devon County Council said. "Our funding is not finite, and therefore we make decisions based on passenger usage and do the best we can to meet public demand. If it were not for our subsidising of some bus routes, the likelihood is that they would simply not run for commercial reasons."
Stagecoach said the changes reflected its aims to improve reliability for passengers and respond to customer demand.
One change in North Devon has already prompted pleas from some users to maintain the existing timetable, with passengers calling it a "lifeline" for the rural communities it serves. Margaret Millman has written to Stagecoach to state that a significant number of passengers have no access to private transport and "rely on the bus for essential food shopping, attending GP and hospital appointments, collecting prescriptions, banking, and accessing other services that are not available locally".
"Because the route travels along narrow single-track country roads and then encounters heavy traffic on entering Barnstaple, the bus occasionally arrives later than scheduled," she said. "This is outside the control of both passengers and the driver. Reducing the time available in Barnstaple is unreasonable and will make it much more difficult for passengers to complete essential tasks before the return journey. The proposed timetable shows little consideration for the needs of those who depend on this service."
The county council said it had reviewed demand on the 372 Barnstaple-Bradworth/Holsworthy route and withdrawn college-day-only journeys between Barnstaple and Bradworthy, as well as Wednesday-only journeys, and amended others. A spokesperson for Devon County Council said the 372 operates a college-day only journey from Bradworthy to Bideford in the morning, with a return in the evening, and on Mondays and Fridays, it also runs from Bradworthy via Bideford to Barnstaple in the morning, returning in the afternoon.
"This provides passengers with either two hours and 30 minutes in Barnstaple or three hours and 15 minutes in Bideford," the spokesperson said.
Devon Council Faces £800,000 Extra Bill for Bus Changes