Pupils’ bus fare to double
TRANSPORT fees for schoolchildren using a bus in Bridgend are to double in September after a change in operator.
First Cymru will end the S56 from Bridgend to Brynteg Comprehensive School via Wildmill from September 1 – and a new operator’s weekly tickets will be twice the price.
TRANSPORT fees for schoolchildren using a bus in Bridgend are to double in September after a change in operator.
First Cymru has decided to end the S56 bus which runs from Bridgend to Brynteg Comprehensive School via Wildmill from September 1.
While another operator, Peyton Travel, has registered to cover much of the same route under the PT12/13 number, weekly tickets will be twice the price – at £12.
Weekly tickets were originally going to cost £15 – with each journey being £1.50 – but the director of Peyton Travel said in an effort to lower the cost and make the service as affordable as possible, a £12 weekly ticket would be offered.
However, concerns have been raised about the hike, which will see families having to pay £48 a month for one child’s travel.
Deputy headteacher of Litchard Primary School Dale Richards, whose two sons will be using the bus to Brynteg School in September, said: “There are real concerns in the local community about the increased costs. The majority of families in the area have more than one child and this price hike will mean it’s going to cost an awful lot of money. The revised weekly ticket amount of £12 is still not economically viable.”
He added: “I am aware that the local authority are discussing subsidy of buses. I’d like to think that funding will be spread out to ensure that the price of travel for all provides equity for the families in the local community. At present I don’t feel that this exists.”
Paul Brain, director of Peyton Travel, said the company would monitor the route on a quarterly basis and if there was a high number of people using the service, ticket prices could be lowered.
He said: “We will always do our utmost to work with the community, which is the reason why we took the decision to extend this route to cover the service that First Cymru had cancelled and ensure the safe transport of pupils to Brynteg School. This has been greatly appreciated by the parents of the affected pupils.”
The company originally decided not to operate through the Wildmill area due to its plans for a double-decker bus which, while maximising capacity, also meant it wouldn’t fit under the railway bridges at Cemetery Road and Litchard Terrace/ Wildmill Lane. Instead it planned to travel as close to the estate as possible, with stops along Coity Road and Litchard Cross.
However, Mr Brain said the company was now in the process of reviewing that decision.
He said: “If there is enough support from the residents of Wildmill for the service we will gladly reapply to extend this service to serve the Wildmill area. If this does happen, we will then use high-capacity single-decker vehicles.”
He added: “To answer some concerns from parents in other areas with regards to the vehicle being full by the time it reaches the stops in Brackla, we can assure you if the uptake exceeds capacity then an additional vehicle will be used to accommodate the number of pupils using this service.”
Peyton Travel has operated a service to Brynteg School from Parc Derwen, Trem Y Castell and the Brackla area for several years, with ticket prices at £1.50 per trip.
A First Cymru spokesman said: “We have been operating Service 56 commercially Monday to Fridays during term-time only for many years.
“Despite our best efforts, the service struggled to cover its cost ever since council funding was withdrawn [in 2015].
“The viability of Service 56 was further impacted due to lack of vehicles as a result of council cutting funding for Service 67, with which the Service 56 shared vehicle resources.
“We notified the council in June that we saw no choice but to deregister the service at the end of term, allowing them ample time to inform Brynteg Comprehensive and liaise with other bus operators to make alternative arrangements.
“As a bus operator, our purpose is to provide bus transport which, like all businesses, has to be done on a sustainable basis.
“Withdrawing services is something we’d rather avoid, but we hope people appreciate that there’s not much we can do when services fail to cover their cost over an extended period.”
Ward councillor Stuart Baldwin said: “It’s disappointing that First Cymru has withdrawn the route as it was more affordable than the current option.
“I am speaking to appropriate officers within the council about safe routes to school and active travel options.
“I accept that the route from Wildmill to Coity Road is an undesirable route for anyone to navigate but there are other options for safe walking to school along Quarella Road.
“This is already a very popular route for children to walk to school.”
Councillor Richard Young, cabinet member for communities, said the decision to end the S56 was not down to the council’s withdrawal of subsidies.