Elderly bus users angry after service stopped

The number 19 Arriva bus previously stopped along Forest Lane, near Dartmouth Avenue.

But due to works being carried out to a bridge where the weight limit was reduced from 11 tons to three tons, buses can now no longer gain access to Forest Lane.

The nearest stop for the number 19, which goes from Walsall town centre to Bloxwich, is now in Dartmouth Avenue - too far for many elderly people to walk to.

Blakenall Councillor Ann Young said that a lack of transport now for elderly people in the street could be dangerous.

"This is a vital service," she said. "It's a heavily condensed area of elderly people's bungalows. Most of them are disabled or have mobility issues. They can't afford to take taxis all the time and they have to be able to get to the doctors and places like that.

"I fear for their well-being, not being able to get out and talk to others. That's not talking as a politician, that's talking as a person with a 94-year-old mother.

"They have no other way out - they are totally reliant on this bus."

She added: "I'm not blaming the bus companies, I'm blaming whoever closed the bridge. Whoever took this decision should take a long hard look at themselves.

"I understand the need to close a dangerous bridge but did they know the area so they could put something else in place?

"Just ask and consult before you take decisions that affect people, especially elderly people."

Blakenall Councillor Pete Smith said elderly people now have to walk several hundred yards to get to a stop.

He said: "Dartmouth Avenue and its off-shoot of cul-de-sacs are predominantly occupied by elderly folk and they now either have to walk several hundred yards in the one way or even further in the other.

"There's no reason why the bus couldn't go down Dartmouth Avenue and before it's getting to the bridge, do a u-turn. "There's plenty of room and they could turn around.

"Elderly folk who are mobile enough to get out are finding it too difficult to travel and it's quite a distance that they'd have to walk to other bus stops."

Fellow Blakenall Councillor Ian Robertson added: "To erect new weight limits on a known bus route without any notice or consultation, to leave literally hundreds of elderly regular bus users with no means of transport is a serious error and we shall be working hard to quickly find a solution."

Arriva spokesman Keith Myatt said: "The weight limit was changed by the local authority and we are now following the official diversion route put forward by the local authority. Buses can no longer go over that bridge."