The Town Council are aware that a local resident has delivered a leaflet to houses in the town, regarding a consultation process that Essex County Council has started regarding Bus Services and Libraries.
We have had residents contacting the Parish Hall, as they have construed the leaflet as intimating that bus services applicable to Brightlingsea are under threat.
We would like to point out that the consultation is set out in 3 sections:-
- The level of service we fund in the evenings and on Sundays. The evening journeys affected are listed in Appendix A and the Sunday services affected are listed in Appendix B. Only the ECC funded elements of any services are affected – where elements of services are run commercially these are not part of the consultation. There are also 2 evening services that exceed £5.00 Cost Per Passenger Journey (the level above which ECC would not normally support). Therefore we are proposing to withdraw those 2 services.
- Proposals to get the right type of service to meet your travel needs by making more use of alternate ways for providing services, such as smaller vehicles, demand responsive transport or taxi-buses.
- Giving local people more control over what, when and where services are run by adopting a policy of devolution. This would give local communities and their representatives at district, town and parish level the opportunity and funding to commission local bus services in their area, based on their understanding of local needs.
Please note:
Section 1 – There are no Brightlingsea Services mentioned in this section.
Sections 2 and 3 – This could affect Brightlingsea in the future.
The Town Council has two Councillors, Block and Judson, whose responsibilities include Highways and Transport. They are only too pleased to answer any questions that residents may have.
See also – https://www.brightlingseatowncouncil.co.uk/council-launches-consultation-on-local-bus-services/
• Regarding the Library, Town and District Councillors, J Chapman and Yallop, are leading on this and have had discussions with various parties, culminating with a public meeting on Monday 4th February. They will only be too pleased to answer any questions residents may have.
