Here in Witheridge, in north Devon, students are regularly late or missing college altogether, disabled people are struggling to attend appointments and members of the community are struggling to access employment, educational and social opportunities, due to an extremely unreliable and unfit for purpose bus service  - the 346.  As a community, we are asking for the reinstatement of the former 155 direct service from Barnstaple to Exeter which served our village and other areas along route, very well.  Over the last 2 years our bus service has been cut back drastically and now there is a very urgent need to reinstate former services, please sign our petition and help us achieve this goal. 

As a regular user of the local bus service, I understand first hand the importance of reliable public transportation, my own son was at college last year and we had to pick up him every week due to extreme unreliability of services. The discontinuation of the 155 direct bus service from Barnstaple to Exeter has greatly affected our community in Witheridge and other areas on the route between South Molton and Tiverton, Devon. This route was not only a lifeline for many young people attending college or work but also an essential service for disabled individuals who rely on it to access opportunities, as well as older people and members of the community who rely on it to avoid isolation and access social, educational and employment opportunities.

There is now a pressing need to improve the bus service between South Molton and Tiverton. Currently, this route is not adequately serving our community's needs due to infrequent schedules and extremely unreliable services.

About 18 months ago the direct 155 service from Exeter to Barnstaple was stopped by Stagecoach and there are now multiple buses required to access this route, with  a change needed at Tiverton to get to Exeter. The 346 bus, introduced between South Molton and Tiverton has been extremely unreliable, we are not notified when the bus is not running or is late and the APP rarely works due to connectivity issues. Students accessing Exeter college or Petroc in Barnstaple have to change buses at Tiverton or South Molton and when the 346 is late, which it frequently is, they miss the connecting service. Students are frequently missing lectures and employees are regularly late for work.  I have missed health appointments and have taken young people in taxis so we can get to where we need to go, due to buses just not turning up.  This happens regularly. People are left standing at bus stops completely unaware of when or if a bus is coming. People are regularly relying on lifts from family or the community and some are proactively looking to move out of the village as it is no longer practical to live here with such unreliable transport.

The village is currently expanding with 155 new houses being built yet our bus service is continuing to get worse and worse. Frequent roadworks on the main road used to mean the 155 still picking passengers up and taking a diversion but the 346 no longer does this. Roadworks are extremely frequent with the main road shut now for many weeks of the year, and communication with the village by Devon County Council is non existent. The community is extremely stressed and despairing and the situation cannot continue like this any longer.

According to Transport Focus (2019), over 50% of young people in rural areas like ours rely on buses as their primary mode of transport. Furthermore, research by Scope UK (2018) highlighted that accessible public transport is crucial for disabled individuals' independence. The situation is disproportionately affecting young people, disabled people and older people. 

By reinstating the 155 direct bus service, we can ensure that everyone in our community has equal access to education, employment opportunities and social activities – regardless of age or ability.

Stagecoach received a ruling which supposedly made it difficult to do the entire route in one go and also cited issues related to financial sustainability, when they decided to axe the direct 155 service in 2022, but we propose that the route is given to another bus company or relooked at  in terms of how Stagecoach could do the route.  The council is under an obligation to reduce the isolation of rural communities, including young people being able to access education. The Council is subsidising the 346 route, with Exeter college also contributing, however, recent awards of transport funding to the council are not being used to improve services in our area and continually prioritise Exeter, Barnstaple and tourist route. Senior council leaders, Stagecoach and local politicians need to come together and work together to sort this situation out!

Lets stand together for better public transportation in Witheridge, Tiverton and Devon. Sign this petition today!