Bus cuts make travel 'impossible', passengers say

People living in one of the Hampshire waterside villages have said a better bus service is needed to stop them being "cut off" from basic services.

The Bluestar Number 9 bus service changed its route in September, meaning Calshot has six buses on weekdays, instead of an hourly service.

Residents said they cannot get to medical appointments or shops, particularly if they are reliant on the free pensioner bus pass, which is only valid after 09:30.

Bluestar boss Andrew Wickham said the waterside services had been "slower to bounce back" in customer numbers after Covid.

Jacqui Clark has been using the bus since she had a knee replacement.

"It’s making us isolated to be honest with you, we can’t get out. It’s very hard for people who don’t drive," she said.

"It’s impossible to get to an medical appointment and back again on the bus. You could be waiting five hours for a bus to bring you back."

Annabella Drummond helps run the Calshot food pantry once a week.

She said the pantry had become a vital service, as Calshot has no shop and people without cars are struggling to get to local villages for food.

"People are completely stranded. You can't walk to Fawley because it's miles on the side of a country lane without a path, too dangerous," she explained.

Volunteer taxi driver Steve Burt added: "I've become the bus. Lots of people need lifts and a few of us are having to help out when people are stuck."

Waterside Changemakers is a group helping people with the cost of living crisis.

They recently surveyed 272 people about the bus service to the villages of Hythe, Marchwood, Langley, Fawley, Blackfield, Dibden and Calshot.

Nearly two thirds of people who responded said buses were not frequent enough, and some reported turning down job opportunities because they could not rely on the bus.

The group has delivered a petition and made a deputation at a Hampshire County Council meeting, calling for subsidies to the service.

The authority runs a Bus Service Improvement Plan (BSIP), funded by the government, and works in partnership with Bluestar.

Andrew Wickham, managing director of the bus firm, said "money isn't unlimited".

"In Hampshire, we need to decide how it's best spent to give the maximum benefit for the greatest number of people," he said.

Mr Wickham said the Calshot service cost more to run than it was making through ticket sales.

"We're part of an enhanced partnership with local councils and they come up with a bus service improvement plan," he said.

After funding was announced on 18 November, Mr Wickham said the company would "sit down with local authorities and agree the best way to spend it".

"Making services faster, more reliable and more punctual is probably the most important thing to attract more people to use buses, so we're really keen to have more of that."

A county council spokesperson added: "With limited funds available, we must direct BSIP funding to routes that will benefit the highest number of potential customers.”

You can follow BBC Hampshire & Isle of Wight on Facebook, X (Twitter), or Instagram.