East Midlands bus firms cite driver shortage as routes pulled

Some bus routes across the East Midlands have been cancelled, with companies citing a shortage of drivers.

Trentbarton said it was "unable to operate" a number of its lines in Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire.

Kinchbus also has pulled some of its routes running between Derby and Loughborough.

Both companies said the issue was "primarily due to a shortage of bus drivers which is impacting the bus industry up and down the country".

Last month Trentbarton and Kinchbus services were disrupted, which they said was caused by "a range of factors", including a lack of drivers.

Trade union Unite said drivers were leaving to become lorry drivers due to pay, and strike action among Kinchbus drivers was called off after they agreed a pay rise.

A Kinchbus spokesman said the company is "recruiting and training new drivers" and will resume full services "as soon as we can", adding customers should check for updates online.

"We are coping with an ongoing shortage of drivers and apologise for the small number of services not running," they said.

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