Surrey Conservatives abandoning bus users (South West Surrey Liberal Democrats)

South West Surrey Liberal Democrats <info@swsurreylibdems.org.uk>

Surrey Conservatives abandoning bus users

October 29, 2004 9:02 PM

A key committee is failing to take up the case of bus users across South West Surrey despite the expected axing of more routes from next February.

Simon Cordon has been promoting his 'back our buses' campaign with leaflets at local bus stops

Surrey County Council's Local Committee in Waverley, made up of county councillors in the Borough, has been accused of "abandoning" bus users by the Liberal Democrat prospective parliamentary candidate for the area, Simon Cordon.

Simon used a public question time at a meeting of the Local Committee last Friday (Oct. 22nd) to urge county councillors to stop the axing of bus routes from next February.

After the meeting Simon said he was "profoundly disappointed" by the committee's refusal to take the matter up with Surrey's Conservative-controlled Executive at County Hall.

"This is a dereliction of duty", said Simon. "All I asked them to do was make the case at County Hall for local bus users and point out that the loss of routes 19, 46,70 and parts of the 71 would be devastating. I was not asking for a solution there and then just their support to make the needs of local bus users heard at County Hall".

Simon told the committee that this was about "keeping basic bus routes, the cost of which is little more than two senior management posts at County Hall".

"Beacon Hill, Lower Bourne, Grayswood, Churt, Frensham, Binscombe - all will be without any bus if these cuts go ahead. Haslemere will be like an island with access cut off to other parts of South West Surrey. I plead with you to take this issue up directly at County Hall and make the case for the £150,000 needed to save these buses", Simon said at the meeting.

Simon has table his own question at a meeting of Surrey's Executive taking place at County Hall today (Oct. 26th). "If the Local Committee won't do this then I will", he said.

The LibDem campaigner has also been attaching boards with information leaflets to main bus stops across South West Surrey. "The aim is to inform bus users what is happening, sign a petition and come forward to help me fight these cuts", said Simon.