Stagecoach buses to be reduced

Changes are temporary

Reductions to Stagecoach bus services in Devon are to come into force from next week, following months of disruptions caused by a shortage of drivers.

The changes – including many in Exeter – are billed as temporary while new drivers are trained up, but the operator’s managing director has warned further reductions are “almost inevitable” due to cost pressures and lower passenger numbers.

Speaking at a meeting of the Exeter highways and traffic orders committee (HATOC), Mike Watson cited inflation, a recent staff pay rise and a number of grants being cut as all putting the squeeze on finances, while he said the number of people on buses is down 30 per cent on pre-pandemic levels.

As a result, service levels “will almost certainly reduce,” Mr Watson said, but added they would try to avoid withdrawing entire routes and that any reductions are done “sensitively” in consultation with the county council.

The reduction to services come after rail operator South Western Railway also announced changes to its timetable, with fewer trains running from this week under a new temporary timetable; introduced to cope with staff shortages and lower passenger numbers.

Bus services in Exeter have suffered significant disruption in recent months, with many cancelled due to a lack of drivers. In October, councillors were told Stagecoach was about 50 drivers short in the city, though “a lot of applications” had gone in.

“It takes a moment to lose a bus driver, but it then takes about 15 weeks to replace them,” Mr Watson said at the time.

Addressing the meeting this week, he said: “The staffing issues peaked in terms of driver shortages around the September mark and since then we’ve put in a number of remedies that have halved the level of lost mileage, so improved the service.

“It’s still not got to where we want it to be, but as from Monday [24 January], a series of service reductions will come into place … which means that we will actually be able to cover all of our services at that point.”

In a statement, Stagecoach South West explained the temporary timetables are being introduced to routes A, E, I/J, R/S in Exeter and routes 11, 21 in North Devon, to keep passengers “connected more smoothly whilst we train drivers to join our driving team.”

List of service reductions
Exeter

A: Daytime frequency reduces to 30 minutes.

E1, E2: Daytime frequency reduces from 20 minutes on each service Mon-Sat daytimes to 30 minutes.

H1/H2: Due to changes in West Garth Road, service will be extended to Cowley Bridge on Monday to Saturday daytimes. The timetable is revised throughout.

I/J: Daytime frequency reduces from 20 to 30 minutes on each service.

R/S: Daytime frequency reduces from 20 to 40 minutes.

155: The 1450 journey from South Molton to Barnstaple will become a Saturday and School Holiday trip only.  A new 1535 journey will continue start from South Molton School to Barnstaple.

5/5A/5B/5C: Due to a forthcoming weight restriction, service will be removed from West Garth Road. West Garth Road will now be served by the H1 and H2. Routes 5/5C evening timetable is also being reviewed. 5A and 5B will be rerouted from Crediton railway station to serve the main road. Routes 5 and 5C will now serve Crediton railway station instead of the main road.

North Devon

11A/11C: Reduced daytime frequency to 30 minutes on each service Mon-Sat.

21/21A/21C: The frequency is reduced between Westward Ho!, Appledore and Bideford to hourly on each service. The timetable will retain a 15 min frequency between Barnstaple & Bideford.

School Buses

815/821/921: Timetables are amended with changes to timings at Barnstaple Bus Station.

819: The afternoon journey is retimed.

903/904: A new timetable is introduced to improve reliability.