'Save our buses' – Plea from passengers over plans to cut-back services in Dudley

Transport chiefs are looking to remove or reduce routes across the area and wider Black Country with a total of 20 being affected by the move.

It comes due to fewer passengers using services in the area since Covid-19 two years ago, increased costs and fewer bus drivers being available.

But for people at Dudley bus station, plans to cut back more services led to frustration – and calls for it to be reversed and more investment added.

Rebecca Barker, who lives near Merry Hill, said: "I think there should be more buses in the evening because it's not safe to be out there on your own.

"I was expecting they would be putting more buses on because of that, and for the weekends too – it's hard if you're working because you'll have to either walk or get a taxi in. I got on a bus this morning and couldn't sit down anywhere so people are still using them."

The 32-year-old said there were issues with delays and trouble with young kids on board, with bus drivers seeming to "not want to do anything" to tackle it. She added that millions was being spent on the Wednesbury to Brierley Hill metro project, which calls at Dudley.

She added: "They are putting millions into that – why can't they use that money towards the buses?"

Meanwhile 75-year-old Josie Johnson, who lives in Tipton but travelled into Dudley, said: "I don't feel too good about it (the bus cuts), the service now is terrible from where I live and everything is being cut isn't it? I wouldn't say I used the buses every day, but at least twice a week and they are just not turning up and you have to wait half an hour to even get one."

Mushtaq Ahmed, who lives in Dudley, said the services reductions marked a "problem" – as he echoed others and called for improvements to be made instead, hitting out at lengthy delays.

The 72-year-old said: "So many times you're waiting for a bus and they just disappear and you're not sure whether it's coming or not – they don't run properly. Sometimes you're there waiting an hour for services and this will make it worse and worse. I know not many people are getting on sometimes, but it's important for the few passengers who do."

"Routes at risk" include in Dudley include the 11/11A service – which runs from Walsall to Merry Hill – which will see in the reduction of early trips between Merry Hill and Dudley between Monday to Saturday. The 10A/10C Stourbridge circular bus journeys on Monday to Friday in the day are at also at risk.

Both services are run by National Express West Midlands, with several Diamond Bus services also being at risk.

The 74A from Dudley to West Bromwich is at risk between Monday and Saturday daytime, along with the 226 from Dudley to Merry Hill in the evenings and Sunday daytime.

The 229 service between Dudley and Bilston will have its evenings and Sunday daytime hours cut, whilst the 250/251 Stourbridge to Merry Hill Circular will be impacted on Monday to Saturday alongside the 298/299 Stourbridge to Pedmore Fields Circular over the same period.

Mr Ladwa, a bus driver for Diamond who sometimes drives the 226 services which is set to be cut back, said: "The 226 is one of the main routes to Kingswinford and we usually get a lot of people – this will definitely impact people.

"It's a regular service, every 20 minutes – the 17s run but they're not as frequent as the 226. Saturday services are short anyone so a lot of people are going to struggle. The bus doesn't just use the main roads, it goes all through estates – it stops for people travelling to and from different estates or into town for other services.

"I think, personally, it needs to be safeguarded but it's all down to the company isn't it?".