Following mounting public pressure, Uno buses have now announced they will restore the number 19 bus route, which served Kingsley Road and Boughton Green Road. The service was removed with little notice on Sunday 5th August, inconveniencing many of my constituents, especially the elderly.
I wrote to the Chief Executive of Uno on Monday 16th June to request a reconsideration of the decision to pull the service. I was disappointed not to receive a response until the week of the withdrawal informing me that Uno had no intention of maintaining the service. I subsequently wrote to the Chief Executive of Stagecoach on Monday, 8th October to enquire whether they could replace Uno as the bus provider, but was met with the same response: that the service was not financially viable. Readers of my E-Newsletter may remember that I recently called on either Uno or Stagecoach to restore the service, which you can read about using the following link: https://www.michaelellis.co.uk/news/michael-calls-bus-route-be-restored.
However, I am pleased to have now been told that under further pressure, especially from local residents, Uno has now reconsidered their decision to withdraw the service after some three months. I have received a lot of emails and letters from concerned constituents on this matter and I consider it an important service to support the elderly, along with all other users of the number 19 route. The service will be reinstated in the new year, and will include a bus every half hour during the week and potentially an hourly service on Saturdays. You can read more about this by reading the following article: https://www.northamptonchron.co.uk/news/victory-for-the-chron-vital-northampton-bus-route-will-return-in-new-year-for-hundreds-of-stranded-residents-1-8689251.