Don't cut buses in Fleet and Church Crookham.

To update where we are at with the campaign for those who don't follow facebook. https://www.facebook.com/dontcutourbuses
Stagecoach are currently reviewing the results of a survey they undertook of passengers. In July they will announce the changes they are going to make in September. We will not know how successful our campaign has been until then. They will not run services that are not considered to be commercially viable and it is likely that our campaign will need to continue afterwards. So many people have told us they desperately need a bus to Frimley Park hospital especially. The other parts of the route are also important: We need a good bus service around Fleet and to Aldershot.

Last week we went to Hampshire County Council to deliver the petition to the full Council Budget meeting. Whilst we were there we held a demonstration outside County Hall, filmed by BBC South Today before giving a speech to the assembled members. You can see a report: http://www.gethampshire.co.uk/news/local-news/campaigners-noisy-protest-bus-cuts-8680997
Please do keep signing the petition though. We want Hampshire County Council to understand that we are not going to stop until Fleet and Church Crookham have buses.

So we have just over a week until the buses are cut. A bit of a check list as to where we are at:

We have new timetables now. It really does look like this is going to go ahead. We need to make this a temporary affair. Please put in your concerns to Hampshire County Council and Stagecoach.

Don't forget to share our petition.

In the mean time. Hampshire CC have said they "we will look to have people on the ground to support the bus company with printed publicity in the area before the service change" and Stagecoach have said that they will try and get more information up at the bus stops. Have we seen any evidence of this whatsoever?

Whilst we can do our best to try and let people know, ultimately the responsibility does come down to the two organisations. For them to not inform bus users in advance is a clear case of negligence. There will be many people left stranded a week on Monday.

I can email leaflets to anyone who wishes to distribute then on their bus journeys.

Stagecoach now have confirmed the changes for all of the routes going through Fleet: http://fleetbuzz.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/Fleet-Leaflet.pdf
The 72 timetable can be found: http://www.stagecoachbus.com/uploads/route728082834thjan2015webfile.pdf

I will be taking a short break over Christmas and only answer urgent messages. I'd like to take this opportunity wish everyone a very happy Christmas.

Welcome to those who have recently come across us. Yesterday many of you will have seen the coverage on BBC South today. It is on iplayer until the end of the 23rd.
Because many of you are not on social media I have created a space to discuss the bus cuts on the Transition Fleet Forum: http://transitionfleet.freeforums.net/ Please can you share this with anyone who you think may be interested.

Conflicting information from Hampshire compared to the info below from Stagecoach. Hampshire have issued the following summary:
Please find attached timetables for these revised bus services in the Fleet area;

· 72 – revised route, now serving Farnborough – Fleet – Reading. Operated by Stagecoach on a fully commercial basis
· 77 – School days only service to Calthorpe Park School
· 415 – Stagecoach commercial service to All Hallows School, extended to Elvetham Heath
· 9 – new service to replace the commercial withdrawal of the 30 service around the Minley Road and Links way to the west of Farnborough

New update on the bus services direct from Stagecoach. It clarifies the confusing timetable below and demonstrates why they should not be rushing these changes through on the hoof.
The 415 will remain in service as it is today. There are no changes in any way to 415.

In addition to 415 there is a new 77 bus which will run from Ewshot along Reading Road South, Aldershot Road (Pondtail), Kings Road, Fleet Road, Cove Road, through Ancells Farm on Farm Drive then Elvetham Heath as current 72. It will run to Calthorpe Park School before continuing to All Hallows. In the afternoon new route 77 runs from Calthorpe Park back through Elvetham Heath and Ancells Farm to Pondtail.

I have just been forwarded a new timetable from Calthorpe park school. This is a timetable that Fleet buzz itself has no knowledge of. It appears to combine the completely full (with All Hallows Students) 415 with the completely full (with Calthorpe Park students) 77, goes to Calthorpe, then the outskirts of Church Crookham to pick up students from the completely full 72 bus to take them to All Hallows where they will arrive late. Oh and to do all of this it has to set off half an hour earlier. It is completely insane and I cannot believe that this is the final solution to the school children issue??
I will post a link to the new new timetable as soon as one appears online.

One of the big losers in these cuts is Elvetham Heath. There will be no buses through the Heath at all, leaving some children literally unable to catch a bus to school. Of course this will affect many others in the area too.

It looks like Hampshire CC are in the process of arranging a scheduled taxi-share service (with 8 seater taxis) to do some of the work of the number 77. When we have more information we will update.

To keep up to date with the campaign day by day please see our facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/dontcutourbuses

Hampshire County Council are now looking into providing a bus purely for children to get to Calthorpe Park school until the end of July. If provided this will be one bus, each way - making it difficult for children to attend after school activities and revision sessions. At present I do not know the proposed route and this would not solve the majority of the issues for the general public that we wish to see addressed.