FRUSTRATION and anger was vented by town councillors this week who criticised the county council for failing to use cash which had been handed over to improve bus links in Bordon.

As part of its deal to open a store in the High Street, Tesco gave total of £395,000 to Hampshire County Council to pay for improved public transport links - but so far not a penny has been spent.

Central to this was cash to pay for an improved Bordhill bus service where the frequency of the bus would double from once hourly in each direction to twice hourly during the store's opening times.

The plan was that the improved service would begin operating at the same time as the new supermarket opened but, almost seven weeks after the store first opened its doors, Bordon's shoppers are still being kept waiting.

At Whitehill Town Council's monthly meeting on Monday, councillor Michael Watkinson said: "It is with some alarm that when town clerk Linda Tiley checked on this and asked Hampshire County Council where the bus improvements were, she was informed by the council that they knew nothing much about it."

The town and district councillor explained that the money had been divided and split between two different county council departments.

"As a result we ended up with one department thinking that the money was for an improved service for Farnham, and one department not knowing anything about it," he said.

Dr Watkinson explained that the breakdown in communication meant that Tesco and its shoppers are suffering along with traders at the Forest Shopping Centre which also would have benefited from the increased frequency of the bus service which stops at the centre as well.

He said: "This was absolutely fundamental in our plans not to allow the Forest Centre to be hived off from the improvements that we are getting.

"Tesco is also quite keen that the Forest Centre should be getting an improved service."

He told angry councillors that the town council had been in touch with county councillor John Filer who had been working hard to find out what had happened to the cash.

As a result a meeting is planned next month between Mr Filer, Dr Watkinson, Mrs Tiley, county officers and Stagecoach to discuss how the money is spent.

"All of this should have been happening three months before Tesco opened. In fact nothing has happened at all.

"It is so typical that we are being called to a meeting to sort out a problem that never should have happened in the first place."

Fellow town councillors were also angry with Hampshire County Council with town mayor Chris Wain declaring that Bordon had "been rather overlooked".

Neil Ockenden also criticised the county council and said that officers had "failed in their obligations".

But Hampshire County Council spokeswoman Sarette Martin told The Herald that none of the money has gone missing and said that officers were working to make sure that the improved bus services are put in place as soon as possible.

She said: "While it has taken a little longer than would have been ideal to put the plans together, the county council has been in discussions with Stagecoach about possible services, and we will be having further talks with Tesco to agree the best way to introduce the services.

"We also e-mailed Whitehill Town Council earlier this week with an update on progress, and have offered to attend a meeting with them to update them further."

John Filer told The Herald that he hopeful that the improved measures would be implemented soon.

"We need to discuss the best way in which to spend this money and come up with a plan," he said.

"Hopefully things will move quickly and we will get the service that we, and above all the residents of Bordon, deserve."