New bus company to run long-distance rural route

Transport
Mark Shaw

County Council transport officers have brokered a new deal to keep the rural route 60 bus service running.

The long-distance service, run by Arriva to serve villages to the north of Aylesbury, was due to finish on 28 July after the company gave the County Council statutory notice that it wouldn’t be continuing.

But today (Wednesday 10 July)  the Council announced that Red Rose Travel bus company will take over the route with a revised timetable. And services from Buckingham Tesco to Maids Moreton will be absorbed into other routes.

The existing eight-times-a-day subsidised Route 60 runs from Aylesbury to Buckingham and Maids Moreton, serving Oving, North Marston, Granborough, and Winslow, carrying between 30 and 40 passengers a day.

It’s one of 46 bus routes across Buckinghamshire that the County Council supports with a £1.8 million fund from local taxes to give access to local communities.

The new route 60 timetable between Buckingham, Winslow and Aylesbury, has been created to meet the majority of users’ needs, drawing on travel patterns and the council’s own surveys. It provides six journeys each way between Winslow and Aylesbury, with three extended to Buckingham.

Between Buckingham and Maids Moreton, Monday to Friday journeys will be run by routes 18 and 151, while on Saturday routes 131 and 132 will operate the service.

Mark Shaw, Deputy Leader and Transport Cabinet Member, said that in negotiating with another company to operate the route for the County Council, officers had considered journeys made by school pupils, by people getting to and from work, and by people who would otherwise be socially isolated.

“Our rural routes receive some of the highest levels of subsidy and we work closely with bus companies to encourage greater use,” said Mark. “With route 60 I believe the new arrangements we’ve negotiated provide support that most closely matches the needs of users.”

Arrangements for the new routes can be found in the bus timetables section of the County Council website.