Changes to be made to six Melton bus services to save £400,000

A series of meetings begin this week where passengers can give their views and find out more about the changes, which have been prompted by a countywide review of the cost-effectiveness of bus transport.

Cash-strapped Leicestershire County Council hopes to save £400,000 from its passenger transport budget.

***The 100 (Leicester - Melton Mowbray) and 113 (Melton Mowbray - Oakham) will be integrated with changes to routes, timings and frequencies. People living in any villages which will no longer be served by a bus will have access to a bookable ‘demand responsive transport’ (DRT) service.

***The 128 (Leicester - Melton Mowbray) will be replaced by a DRT.

***The 23 (Melton Mowbray – Nether Broughton), 24 (Melton Mowbray – Bingham/Bottesford) and 25 (Melton Mowbray – Stathern) will be integrated with routes, timings and frequencies amended aaccordingly.

***All other Melton borough bus services will remain unchanged.

Blake Pain, cabinet member for environment and transport at County Hall, said: “We have been working hard to find a solution that offers the best value-for-money, for bus services across Melton.

“It’s important that we review how the services we fund are performing to ensure that they are fit for purpose and reflect demand for travel.

“I urge all affected service users to join us at these meetings, to discuss the changes and raise any questions or issues they have.”

County council officals will be available to answer questions about 113 service changes at a meeting on Wednesday at Burton Lazars village hall from 1:30pm.

On Thursday, Thrussington village hall is the venue for a meeting about the 128 service (Melton to Leicester via Frisby) from 9.45am.

Later that day, officials will be at Great Dalby village hall from 4.15pm to talk about service 100 (Melton to Leicester via Great Dalby).

The changes to all six bus services will be explained at Melton Borough Council’s Civic Suite, on Burton Street, on Tuesday November 12, at 10.30am, and again at 2.15pm.

The following day, at Bottesford VC Hall, at 10.30am, there will be a meeting about the integration of services 23, 24 and 25.

And on Thursday November 14 in the refectory at the town campus of Brooksby Melton College, at 5:30pm, there will a meeting on changes to all six services.

For more information about the changes, go online at www.leicestershire.gov.uk/passenger-transport , email [email protected] or call 0116 305 0001.