Residents excluded from new bus route - councillor

Charlotte Smith says the new services affect people "getting to school, to college and to work"

Two new bus routes have left a community in a town "excluded", a councillor has said.

Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Combined Authority replaced the number 11 bus service from Newmarket, Suffolk, to Cambridge with two new routes on Tuesday.

Residents in Studlands Park, Newmarket, have been "excluded from the route" said Janne Jarvis, a Labour councillor at West Suffolk Council and Newmarket Town Council.

In a statement on their website, Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Combined Authority said: "These routes have been designed to better connect our towns, villages and communities."

The new Tiger 4 bus service, which is run by Stagecoach, operates between Newmarket to Addenbrooke's Hospital in Cambridge.

Charlotte Smith, who lives in Exning, Suffolk, said: "We used to be able to get to the centre of Cambridge. We now have to go to Addenbrooke's."

Addenbrooke's Hospital is about two miles (3.2km) from Cambridge city centre.

She added: "I am a mother; I do not drive. My husband does not drive. We now cannot access Tesco anymore.

"My main concern of this is I have been a passenger on these buses every day for the last five years and have built community on these buses."

Ms Smith added that residents were "looking for accountability from Suffolk County Council" to reach out to explain "why they thought this was OK".

A spokesperson for Suffolk County Council confirmed the new routes were "funded by Cambridge and Peterborough Combined Authority who, as such, ultimately decide on where the bus routes should serve".

Janne Jarvis said he is "calling on Suffolk County Council to urgently clarify their position" on the transition

Jarvis said: "I strongly urge Suffolk County Council to take immediate action to reinstate the Studlands route.

"It is concerning for the more vulnerable and elderly in our society.

"We are going to challenge this. We are going to look for a resolution," he added.

Cambridge and Peterborough Combined Authority added that the new routes will offer "faster journey times, more frequent services, and improved reliability".