As people catch a bus to make their way into work and school all across the county each morning there will soon be one Leicestershire village where the bus will not be stopping.
Planned changes to Arriva timetables mean that for 90 minutes during rush hour, no buses will be picking up passengers in Newbold Verdon after changes to the 153 route which passes through Desford, Market Bosworth and Leicester Forest East.
Julie Bailey is a civil servant from Newbold Verdon working in Leicester city centre.
She has caught the 7.05am bus from the village to work for 19 years.
Julie’s bus is one of two that will be scrapped when changes to the timetable come into effect at the start of next month.
Losing the two buses will mean the village, on Arriva’s 153 route, will have no bus stop there between 6.18am and 7.48am.
She said: “I’ve no idea what I’ll do now. I’ve caught that same bus every day at the same time.
“If I catch the earlier bus I’ll have to get up at quarter to five in the morning and then walk through the city centre in the dark to get to work and I don’t feel safe doing that, if I get the later bus I’ll be late for work.
“Times on the way back have changed too, so I have to walk through town centre streets in the dark to get to the bus stop after the route changed.”
'People rely on those two buses'
Jennifer Collins’ 16-year-old son Joshua relies on the 7.28am bus to get to Leicester College.
She said: “When the timetable change comes in there will be an hour and a half in the morning rush hour where there is no bus into Leicester.
“People rely on those two buses to get into work, college or school. They are well used so it doesn’t make sense to get rid of them.
“My son uses the bus to get to Leicester College and back in time for work.
“At the moment there’s a bus every 30 minutes, when this new timetable starts there will be an hourly or less service.
“How are people supposed to make use of the service when the buses don’t even run in rush hour?
“I don’t know what people will do.”
What did Arriva say?
Arriva has made changes to the number of buses running and timetables across the county.
Passengers have slammed the changes which have caused students to be late for school and staff late for work.
Arriva told Leicestershire Live that the timetable has been revised to ‘ better match customer demand and ensure it remains financially sustainable’.
A company spokesperson added: “The service will now operate hourly, with the short journeys between Leicester and Newbold Verdon withdrawn.
“Most journeys will extend from Market Bosworth Square out to Bosworth Water Park and the Battlefield Line Railway as a result of customer feedback.”
