Hucknall councillors to meet with bus operator over plans to cut town services

Back at the start of February, TrentBarton announced the Connect evening and Sunday services on its green route that serves the Hucknall estates, will end from April 2, meaning there will now be no Connect evening or Sunday services as there were already no Sunday or evening buses on the Connect blue route.

In addition, the second bus on the blue route will be withdrawn from Mondays to Saturdays.

The Connect service was threatened with the axe last year until Nottinghamshire Council stepped in with funding to keep it going.

However, that funding is now due to end in April and TrentBarton says passenger numbers are not high enough for them to keep the service running .

The decision to axe the services was met with an angry response by Hucknall bus users.

And Hucknall county councillors are now meeting with TrentBarton and transport chiefs at the council to discuss ways to stop the cuts.

Several residents have also called for councillors to start a petition to save the services, as was the case with the 141 service serving Hucknall and Linby last year.

However, Coun Dave Shaw, who represents Hucknall West , said they wanted to hear what Trent Barton and the council had to say first.

He said: “These cuts will have a devastating impact on our communities leaving many increasingly isolated.

“The reality is TrentBarton cancelled buses at the last minute and failed to provide a service Hucknall residents could rely on.

“This directly led to the lower than usual passenger numbers.

“We are also asking the council to look at providing the subsidies to allow evening and Sunday services to continue.

“It was only two weeks ago that the council was saying its ambition was that no community in Nottinghamshire would be left without public transport.

“It’s now time for it to put its money where its mouth is.

“We are awaiting for the outcome of the meeting before starting any petition.

“It’s only fair to listen to what they have to say.”