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Peter Black and South Wales West Liberal DemocratsRepresenting Aberavon, Bridgend, Gower, Neath, Ogmore, Port Talbot, and Swansea |
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Ridiculous bus services result in journeys 15 times their length
May 24, 2011 5:21 PM
The Welsh Liberal Democrat Assembly Member for South Wales West, Peter Black has expressed his disbelief at a local bus company recommending residents in Neath spend nearly 2 hours on a bus instead of the 7 minutes it could take.
For residents of Banwen, Glynneath is the nearest shopping area, but no bus service connects the two, despite them being only 7 minutes apart on the A4109. The bus company operating in the area, First, suggested residents of Banwen use the services into the town of Neath to commute between Banwen and Glynneath.
"This is a ridiculous suggestion" said Mr Black. "Local people will know that this journey in and out of Neath is 7 times longer by car than going directly to Glynneath, and that's without traffic slowing you down. But when you take into account the bus timetable and waiting for connections at Neath Victoria Gardens, you're looking at a journey 15 times longer than the direct route."
"Glynneath serves many people in the local area with shops, a bank, a training centre and schools as well as a supermarket and a library. It is an important resource for the people of Banwen and other outlying areas, especially older people who cannot drive.
"The two buses, one from Banwen to Neath and then Neath to Glynneath would take 1 hour 50 minutes including a wait of 30 minutes at the bus station for the connection. It's not acceptable for any customer to be making such a journey to access their local shops, especially those more vulnerable in our society. With the journey back a traveller could spend 4 hours of their day on the bus.
"As beautiful as our countryside is, this is not a practical journey to enable people to access their local amenities. You would actually be quicker walking to Glynneath, but this is not suitable for many of the elderly residents, especially when laden with groceries or library books."
"I have expressed my concern to First Bus Company and requested a route be established between the two locations."
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