Passengers unhappy as routes change

2:27pm Tuesday 16th January 2007

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BUS passengers have been angered at feeling the effect of bus route changes in Witney and Carterton.

A number of alterations were made following a review of bus subsidies by Oxfordshire County Council in November.

The 101, 102,103 and X2 Witney to Carterton services have been tied into a new 200 service, which started last month.

To add to passengers' frustrations the 200 - along with the 100 - also travels to Oxford as part of the route.

The change has left customers standing at bus stops waiting for buses, which have been held up by city centre traffic.

There has also been a revamp to the 215 Witney service, which links Smiths Estate, Davenport Road, Springfield Oval, Moorland Road. and the town centre.

However, it no longer drops people off near to the town's health centres.

Reg Townsend, 77, said pensioners in Witney have to walk further to get to the Windrush and Nuffield Health Centres.

Mr Townsend, of Windrush Valley Road, a former electrical engineer, said: "To add further distress to our elderly, the bus stops at the bottom of Moor Avenue, and tells passengers they can walk through the rear entrance of the hospitals to reach the health centres.

"Many OAPs have problems even using walking sticks."

Sheelagh Sizeland, of Glenmore Road, in Carterton, said the route changes had made her late for work in Witney every day. She now gets a lift in with a colleague.

She said: "No notices were placed on buses warning customers about the timetable changes until December 10, the date they actually changed.

"I want a reason why five buses between Witney and Carterton have been scrapped.

"It is not satisfactory to have only buses between Oxford and Carterton. Everyone in the county is aware that the A40 is a notoriously busy and slow-moving route.

"I am now getting to work late, and I have to wait 20 minutes at the bus stop in Witney for a bus to get home.

"Carterton is not a small village, we are a very large and growing town."

Chris Child, marketing manager at Stagecoach, said: "Inevitably, there will be some teething problems with changes on this scale, and we take any comments from passengers very seriously.

"We are evaluating all feedback, and will consider any adjustments in the light of this. We are discussing the route of the Witney town service 215 with Oxfordshire County Council, for whom we run this service under contract.

"As far as the punctuality of buses between Witney and Carterton is concerned, we are keeping this under close review over the coming weeks.

"Services have been adversely affected by traffic congestion over Christmas and New Year, and more recently by traffic delays caused by flooding.

"Services should now settle down over the next few weeks.

"However if adjustments to timetables are necessary, these will be made.

"But there are many positive features arising from what passengers have been telling us they want - more evening buses to Oxford, better links between Carterton and Oxford, and a complete new fleet of easy-access, wheelchair and baby buggy-accessible, minibuses arriving within the next few weeks."