Transport for Wales criticised after changing key bus route without consultation
Richard Evans, local democracy reporter
Transport for Wales (TfW) has come under fire after a key bus route was changed ‘without consultation’.
TfW has been criticised after changing the T3 Barmouth to Wrexham bus service route to a new T3C route.
Edeirnion councillor Gwyneth Ellis claims students from Denbighshire villages attending Coleg Meirion-Dwyfor in Dolgellau will now be forced to travel to and from Corwen for connecting buses, rather than directly.
Cllr Ellis, who is also the cabinet member for finance, says the decision will especially inconvenience students travelling to and from villages such as Cynwyd, Llandrillo, or Llandderfel.
The Plaid Cymru councillor says she is disappointed locals were not consulted.
Unhappy
“Lots of people in the villages are unhappy. My main concern is for the students in the college. There is no direct bus back from the college site at Dollgellau to Cynwyd, Llandrillo, or Llandderfel,” said Cllr Ellis.
“Basically they will have to take the bus to Corwen, wait, and then have to catch the bus back from Corwen down to the villages. I think that is unfair on students.
“At the end of their day at college, they don’t want to go all the way to Corwen and wait for a bus to come back. They just want to go home.”
She added, “It is a shame Transport for Wales didn’t do more consultation. As far as I’m aware or that I’ve been able to find out, Transport for Wales have done this without any consultation.
“Generally people are very much against it. It has been introduced without any consultation or explanation. Lots of students are just worried they are not going to be able to get home.
“It is not well thought out. The A494 from Bala to Corwen gets really busy, especially when the weather is nice. Bala is a very popular destination. So I don’t think they will save the time that they hoped they were going to save. I feel it has been imposed on people, rather than a consultation.”
A spokesperson for Transport for Wales said: “A new timetable for the T3 route came into effect on Sunday 5 November which includes the introduction of the T3C service which serves the communities of Llanuwchllyn, Llandderfel, Cynwyd and Llandrillo and provides a connection with the T3 services at Corwen to and from Wrexham.
“These changes facilitate an improved journey time on the T3 corridor whilst maintaining the opportunity for the villages of Llanuwchllyn, Llandderfel, Cynwyd and Llandrillo to access the T3 service at Corwen. Alternatively, those travelling to Bala can do so on the T3C without the need to change.
“These changes also improve connection opportunities at Corwen and allows passengers to connect on to the T10 service to Betws y Coed and Bangor and the T8 service to Chester via Ruthin and Mold.
“We welcome feedback from customers on the changes and this can be submitted through the TrawsCymru website or via[email protected].”
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Public transport throughout Wales is a basket case. Buses in Cardiff, owned by Cardiff Council, are continuously cancelled, routes changed etc etc. on a whim. Very expensive and very unreliable and infrequent. So much for protecting the environment by getting people out of their cars. Its impossible to hold down a job while using public transport in Wales.
It seems non- sensical to take buses off the most populous route and place them on a route which is busier traffic wise and the population density is much lower. One would anticipate a loss of income for the bus companies.