Mayor Launches Campaign for Evening Bus Service

By Joe Willis

FRESH calls have been made for a better bus service in a North Yorkshire town.The Mayor of Colburn, Councillor Helen Grant, says she intends to spend this year campaigning for buses to stop in the town in the evening. At present, there are no buses after 6.30pm.She said: “The second biggest town in Richmondshire has no bus service at night.”Bus services should be socially inclusive. At present, one seventh of the voting population in the district is being socially excluded after 6.30pm.”Coun Grant has called on bus company Arriva and North Yorkshire County Council to merge the 27/28 service, which runs to nearby Catterick Garrison, with the 34 service to Colburn. The 27/28 service already runs until the late evening.”Very little alteration to the existing 27/28 route would be required, ” she said.”The bus could go from Whiteshops to Colburn through the town, on to the Brough and St Giles roundabout and back up the main road to Whiteshops.”This would save on fuel and increase the service to half hourly all day, giving us a proper service.”In response to Coun Grant’s suggestion, a company spokesman said: “All our services in that area were reviewed towards the end of last year and the services we implemented were based on passenger numbers and potential numbers in the future.”He said services were unlikely to be changed in the near future.Richard Owens, assistant director of integrated passenger transport for the county council, said the authority would consider the proposal.”We are always receptive to suggestions of how to improve the bus services and we will look at the implications of what has been put forward, ” he said.On Thursday, Coun Grant appealed to the county council’s Richmondshire area committee for a better bus service to her town.She said it was “less than fit for purpose” at present.

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