Improved bus services for rural communities key priority ahead of major consultation

Alec Doyle, Local Democracy Reporter

Better links to a major nearby city and improved bus services for rural communities have been identified as key priorities ahead of a major consultation on the future of local transport.

In Flintshire, councillors said stronger connections to Chester and better provision for isolated towns and villages should be at the heart of planned reforms to the bus network.

Transport for Wales is preparing to launch a nationwide engagement exercise this summer as the Welsh Government moves towards greater control of bus services through a franchising model.

During a meeting of Flintshire Council’s Environment and Economy Overview and Scrutiny Committee, members highlighted the decline in local bus services and the growing isolation of some communities as they considered a map showing the county’s existing network.

The base network map will serve as the starting point for a public consultation which will be underpinned by in-person events in Flint, Holywell and Mold. Deeside areas including Connah’s Quay will be included in separate consultations linked to the Flintshire and Wrexham Investment Zone’s transport links.

Cllr Roy Wakelam raised the plight of residents in Penyffordd, where public transport schedules make it impractical for workers to use buses to commute, forcing people to use cars to get to work.

“I feel like a stuck record when I talk about this, but since Covid my ward has grown almost 25%,” he said.

“A bus stop was even built as part of one of the biggest developments in the ward – it hasn’t got a bus.

“I have well over 5,000 people in the ward now and we have one bus that goes through, the 29. You can’t get to Mold before 10am, you can get to Wrexham just before 9am but you have to run really fast to get to work on time.

“You can’t get home from Mold after 4pm and you can’t get home from Wrexham after 5.30pm. There is a T8 from Ruthin, but for the majority of elderly residents using the buses, it’s a mile-and-a-half walk to the bus stop, over a hill.

“The Flexibus isn’t viable, the time gaps are too open and people that have tried to use it say it’s not consistent enough to get to work on time.

“We’ve met with Arriva many times. They say their data doesn’t support the need for a bus, but they gathered that data during Covid when nobody was using buses.

“There are lots of people who want to work in Chester and if you have a car there are good connections. If you need a bus or a train, it’s not there.”

Isolation

He was backed by Caergwrle Cllr Dave Healey who said TfW needed to look at expanding the network.

“Councillor Wakelam has put his finger on a big problem as far as the isolation of several rural communities is concerned,” he said. “I would hope with the Flintshire and Wrexham Investment Zone funding that in order to get people to places of employment from the rural communities, that there are additional provisions to make that possible.

“I would fully support what Councillor Wakelam was saying about this link to Chester. In some of the other parts of South Flintshire, we had high hopes that the T8 could link us to Chester from Hope, Caergwrle and even Hope Mountain.

“What we did have in the past that provided a link for these communities to Chester, which is desirable from a leisure and recreational point of view, is the DB1, which I think probably went through Pennyffordd as well.

“It linked the various communities within the rural parts of South Flintshire with Chester, but that wasn’t viable and it no longer exists, leaving those communities cut off.

“I hope with this bus franchising, what we’re able to achieve is that those areas that are profitable will subsidise those areas that are not profitable.”

Elected members approved the core service map, paving the way for consultation to begin across the county in August.