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Bus service cuts will have ‘huge impact’ - Claim

Thursday, 4 February 2010

A local resource centre has said changes to local bus routes proves a lack of interest in addressing rural isolation in the Finn Valley.
Among routes affected is a Bus Eireann service, which was used by school pupils in St Johnston to get to school in Raphoe and other areas. The route is no longer available as from Monday past.
A re-organisation of routes 487, 490, 491 and 494 linking the 'Twin Towns', Letterkenny and Strabane will also lead to route alterations and some reduction in frequency from February 28.
Bus Eireann say the drive is the first phase of a cost recovery plan, which will see 250 workers laid off. The body said in a statement that the economic downturn has seen a significant drop of over 10 per cent in demand for public transport in 2009.
School pupils using the affected service have been accommodated on alternative buses, but concerns have been raised about those left without public transport service.
The family resource centre in St Johnston also say pupils were told about the changes for the first time on Thursday last.
Mary Crossan, of the St Johnston Resource Centre, said the changes marked a cut in already limited services in the area.
“It is going to have a huge impact. The main thing is the lack of public consultation," she said.
“No one knew the buses were going to be be taken off. The children were told at school on Thursday, that's how we became aware. There will be a bus, but just for the students, there will be no public service.
Erosion
“A lot of people are very angry about it. It's a further erosion of the already limited services we have here. The whole fight here is around social inclusion and addressing the issue of rural isolation and when something like this happens you just wonder how interested people are in addressing this.
“At the minute I'm tying up a letter to our regional manager - we have local councillors lobbying on our behalf. We're hoping that people do get on board and try to address this," she said. Local Fianna Fail councillor, Gerry Crawford, said many people in the area had come to depend on the existing service.
“I spoke to Bus Eireann and they confirmed what the resource centre was saying, that the bus timetable was being altered. I expressed the view that its wasn't suitable to the users of the bus," he said.
“The lack of public consultation was an issue. I reiterated to Bus Eireann that this was unacceptable. We are a rural population and we do need the rural transport. They said it was taken in conjunction with other moves to improve services, such as the bus to Knock airport, and while those are all to be welcomed they don't, in fact, address local needs.
“We will be calling on other public representatives in the local community to impress upon Bus Eireann just how important and vital a link it is in this area. There are people who have used this service for many years, it's something they depend on."
‘No longer sustainable'
In last week's statement Bus Eireann said certain services were "no longer sustainable".
“Unfortunately, there are a small number of services throughout the country that have very low customer support and given the current economic environment and the limit to the operational funds available to the company these services are no longer sustainable," the statement said.
“Such services often have five passengers or less per departure. In many such cases, the fare revenue from these customers doesn't even cover the fuel for the bus let alone the wages for the driver or the maintenance of the vehicle.
“Bus Eireann must curtail such services, otherwise it would have no alternative but to make changes to services that have much higher levels of support.
“In making these changes, Bus Eireann will seek to minimise their impact on its customers and its integrated network as much as possible. It is with great regret that Bus Eireann has to take this action, but it is unavoidable and necessary given the deterioration in the economy over the last 18 months and the subsequent fall in customer numbers.
“The company is acutely aware of the difficulties these changes may cause for customers and staff. However, implementation of the cost recovery plan, which follows ongoing cost reducing measures over recent years, is vital to ensuring the continuance of as many of our 330 routes as possible."

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