Wednesday, August 20, 2008
Gnosall Ruralink - R.I.P.
Friday 29th August is a special day in more ways than one for Gnosall Ruralink – the community transport service which provides a public transport link to a number of small villages to the west of Stafford. On that day the organisation not only celebrates its 7th birthday but also runs its last service, as on the following Monday a new operator – ABC Coaches from Stoke-in-Trent takes over the routes.
Originally set up as a joint venture between the County Council, Gnosall Parish Council, and the surrounding communities Ruralink has provided a much need bus service to villages such as Church Eaton, Bradley, Morton and Ranton. Certainly new to this part of the world, the concept behind the service is underlined by part of its name, as the small minibus linked the rural communities it served to buses run by Arriva on mainline routes.
Over the seven years the service has relied on Government grants and subsidies from the County Council to keep running. However free handouts can not go on for ever and a few weeks ago the County Council went out to tender to see if they could get a better deal for the local Council Tax payer. The successful bidder for the work was, as already mention above, ABC Coaches who already run a similar service elsewhere in the County.
As one of the volunteer Directors of Ruralink I am sad to see the service moving away from direct community control, but at the end of the day it is the fact that the villages are still getting the public transport service they need that is far more important than who the service is run by. However as a Councillor, I will be monitoring the new service and will be the first to complain to the County Council if it deteriorates.
ABC Coaches takes over the Ruralink routes on the 1st September. Timetables and ticket prices will, for the time being, remain the same as those currently enjoyed.
Originally set up as a joint venture between the County Council, Gnosall Parish Council, and the surrounding communities Ruralink has provided a much need bus service to villages such as Church Eaton, Bradley, Morton and Ranton. Certainly new to this part of the world, the concept behind the service is underlined by part of its name, as the small minibus linked the rural communities it served to buses run by Arriva on mainline routes.
Over the seven years the service has relied on Government grants and subsidies from the County Council to keep running. However free handouts can not go on for ever and a few weeks ago the County Council went out to tender to see if they could get a better deal for the local Council Tax payer. The successful bidder for the work was, as already mention above, ABC Coaches who already run a similar service elsewhere in the County.
As one of the volunteer Directors of Ruralink I am sad to see the service moving away from direct community control, but at the end of the day it is the fact that the villages are still getting the public transport service they need that is far more important than who the service is run by. However as a Councillor, I will be monitoring the new service and will be the first to complain to the County Council if it deteriorates.
ABC Coaches takes over the Ruralink routes on the 1st September. Timetables and ticket prices will, for the time being, remain the same as those currently enjoyed.
# posted by Barry Stamp @ 6:36 PM 
Subscribe to Posts [Atom]
