Pensioners in Chatteris who were forced to wait two hours for a bus to Cambridge in the morning can now use their free bus pass to travel before 9.30am.
Pensioners in Chatteris who were forced to wait two hours for a bus to Cambridge in the morning can now use their free bus pass to travel before 9.30am.
The news comes after the no. 9 bus, which previously ran hourly, switched to a two-hourly service in January. It meant that the earliest service from Chatteris which pensioners could get using their free bus pass was at 11.20am.
After being informed that the timetable change was making it increasingly more difficult for older people to travel between Chatteris and Cambridge, MP Steve Barclay organised a meeting with Andy Campbell, managing director of Stagecoach.
Mr Barclay said: “I was informed that Cambridgeshire County Council has concessionary powers, to allow pensioners to use their free bus pass before 9.30am.
“There is currently a 9.20am service from Chatteris to Cambridge and I therefore wrote to Cambridgeshire County Council requesting that free bus pass holders be able to travel on this journey as an exception.
“I am happy to announce that Cambridgeshire County Council have agreed to this request.
“In a rural area such as our own, transport links are vital. Those who are most vulnerable often rely on public transport and I am pleased that working with Stagecoach and Cambridgeshire County Council has produced such a result for Chatteris.
He added that getting the 11.20am bus “quite simply does not provide adequate time before having to catch the return service back to Chatteris”.
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