Chaos on buses

University students left in lengthy queues as overcrowded buses drive past

Pupils still waiting for buses to school after 9am as too few operate

First Bus apologises as service struggles to meet ‘unexpected’ demand

A Bath parent has formally complained to the council about the school bus services in his area. The Oldfield Park dad said his children were “stressed and upset” on the first day of school after several bus services were withdrawn following cuts to council funding. The man, who does not want to be named, said his daughter used to have the choice of catching four different buses to Ralph Allen School, but the 20A, 20C, RA3 and RA4 have all disappeared. And when she came to take her little brother to school for the first time, the best alternative, a university service run by First Bus, was jam-packed, he said. They could not even get on the full U2 home and had to catch another bus into town and walk home from there, their father said. They arrived home at 5pm and were “stressed and upset”, he said. The next morning they were late to school because the “packed out” U2 was late and that afternoon there were tears when one child was able to get on the bus home and the other wasn’t. “We cannot allow our children to experience this level of distress and uncertainty every day so we are going to have to drive them to and from school, contributing to the already overcrowded roads,” he said. The dad, who said he and his wife usually walk, cycle or catch the train to work, said: “It seems bizarre there is such demand for the bus at these times and yet just one runs. “How has this been allowed to happen with a school on the edge of town having just one bus serving a large number of children throughout the city?” Since submitting his complaint, he has learnt there is a number 20, also run by First Bus, which stops at Ralph Allen once each morning and once each afternoon but he says it “goes right around the houses and even on their own timetable takes over an hour, and, the reality is usually worse”. First Bus changed the route of its U2 bus and added the 20 service to its timetable after it won a £260,000 a year contract with the council to provide replacement bus services to Ralph Allen School. The council said it was the “best deal” it could get to replace the 20A and 20C services. The council made further cuts to subsidised bus services earlier this year but says it is still meeting its statutory obligation. “Bath and North East Somerset Council continues to meet its duty to provide home-to-school transport for those children who qualify – either by buying places on commercial bus services or by providing dedicated transport where necessary,” a spokeswoman said. “The council has facilitated contact between Ralph Allen School and local bus operators to encourage them to work together to meet the demand for transport for pupils.” First Bus and Ralph Allen School have been contacted for comment.

University students and school pupils have been experiencing a myriad of problems this week as changes to bus routes and fare rises are realised. Amanda Cameron looks at the issues faced