Contin bus timetable issue set to come before public meeting; Proposed Stagecoach cuts have sparked objections
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A CRISIS meeting to discuss the future of a rural bus service has been called for Monday evening.
Members of Contin Community Council are hosting a meeting to find a way forward after being told some of its lifeline bus services will be pulled by operator Stagecoach.
Stagecoach, who met with community representatives earlier this week, left Councillor Ian Cockburn with the impression that the private operator would longer no be running the service at certain times of the day, including a morning, and afternoon service.
Final details of the timetable have yet to be published, but it is due to come into force on February 10.
Mr Cockburn said he was disappointed with the outcome of the meeting, but would be looking for a community-led solution to the problem.
He said: "Stagecoach has basically told us that it can not run this service, as it has a knock-on effect with timings for other routes. It is not cost-effective for them to keep it.
"We will need to come up with another plan, and I have a number of ideas but I want to make sure I have discussed them with the community at the meeting on Monday night."
Contin Community Council chairwoman Norma Ross hoped that Stagecoach might delay the cancellation of the service until after Easter, for the community to come up with a plan.
Mrs Ross said: "I understand Councillor Cockburn has asked for a bit of grace from Stagecoach, and I hope they will be able to do that while we come up with a plan."
A spokeswoman for Stagecoach said: "Our finalised timetables for February 10 and will be released by the end of this week."
Stagecoach has said it held a public consultation over the issue and has shared statistics showing the number of users on the services it plans to cut.
The meeting will be held on Monday night at 7.30pm in Contin Hall and all are welcome to attend.
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