1,000 signatures reached
To: Matthew Arnold at Stagecoach, Kent
Save the No 7 bus route for Hoath and surrounding villages - Save the school bus to Spires Academy
Dear Matthew and Stagecoach, we ask that you reconsider the termination of the No 7 bus service and retain this important bus route that runs from Herne Bay railway station via the Queen Victoria Hospital to Sainsbury’s through Beltinge, Hillborough, Reculver Primary School, Reculver village, Maypole, Hoath, Knave’s Ash, Sturry Railway Station, Broad Oak, Northgate Sainsbury’s in Canterbury and Canterbury Bus Station.
As you will see from the list of stops on this bus route, It is a vital service for residents in the most rural areas at the East of the Canterbury district. It connects residents in the villages to schools, the hospital, railway station, the shops, doctors surgeries, work and other urgent services. After two years of the pandemic and the long lockdowns the termination of the No 7 bus route and the bus to Spires Academy has dealt a heavy blow to all of us.
This decision to stop the bus service affects the most vulnerable in our communities including the elderly who have no access to other means of transport as well as the young and many other sectors of the community. This decision isolates a number of communities. It means the village of Reculver will be completely cut off as will Maypole and Hoath. Elderly residents in Broad Oak will also lose their only transport link. It makes us concerned about the future of these villages. We have new housing developments at Broad Oak and Hillborough, yet you are cutting the only bus service. This is totally detrimental to green policies on getting people out of their cars and onto public transport. It also discriminates against the most vulnerable in our society.
We also ask that you retain the bus service during school times to Spires Academy. Again this cut will cause unnecessary hardship for many parents and children. The bus is always full and we can see no reason why you are cutting this service. It will be detrimental to the villages and affects many children across the North of the district.
The bus is a life saver. We are disappointed that you have not spoken to Hoath or Sturry parish councils about your plans and that you have failed to communicate with residents so that other alternatives could be looked into. We request that you contact the parish councils and local representatives to review the bus service and work out a practical way for its continuation and reinstatement.
As you will see from the list of stops on this bus route, It is a vital service for residents in the most rural areas at the East of the Canterbury district. It connects residents in the villages to schools, the hospital, railway station, the shops, doctors surgeries, work and other urgent services. After two years of the pandemic and the long lockdowns the termination of the No 7 bus route and the bus to Spires Academy has dealt a heavy blow to all of us.
This decision to stop the bus service affects the most vulnerable in our communities including the elderly who have no access to other means of transport as well as the young and many other sectors of the community. This decision isolates a number of communities. It means the village of Reculver will be completely cut off as will Maypole and Hoath. Elderly residents in Broad Oak will also lose their only transport link. It makes us concerned about the future of these villages. We have new housing developments at Broad Oak and Hillborough, yet you are cutting the only bus service. This is totally detrimental to green policies on getting people out of their cars and onto public transport. It also discriminates against the most vulnerable in our society.
We also ask that you retain the bus service during school times to Spires Academy. Again this cut will cause unnecessary hardship for many parents and children. The bus is always full and we can see no reason why you are cutting this service. It will be detrimental to the villages and affects many children across the North of the district.
The bus is a life saver. We are disappointed that you have not spoken to Hoath or Sturry parish councils about your plans and that you have failed to communicate with residents so that other alternatives could be looked into. We request that you contact the parish councils and local representatives to review the bus service and work out a practical way for its continuation and reinstatement.
Why is this important?
Please sign this petition if you are affected by the loss of the No 7 bus service and the Spires School Service and let Matthew Arnold at Stagecoach Kent know why he needs to reinstate these bus routes. This decision affects residents in Beltinge, Reculver, Hillborough, Castle Chase, Maypole, Knaves Ash, Hoath, Sturry and Broad Oak. We may only be small communities but our need for this bus route is vital to the health and wellbeing of all residents.
