UNCERTAINTY hangs over a vital bus link in Petersfield after the sudden shock announcement that the contract for the route was to end on Saturday. The 94 bus is a circular service linking residential parts of Petersfield with schools, supermarkets, administrative buildings at Penns Place and the railway station. But if an emergency replacement is not found by Monday, many regular users could end up marooned. And this week Hampshire County Council, which puts the contract out to tender, came under fire from district councillor Brian Dutton. He slated the county council for failing to keep bus users informed about Minerva Accord's decision to withdraw from the service. And he feared a temporary solution to the problem would not be enough to reassure families who sent their children to school on a bus that public transport could be a relied upon in the future. He also expressed concern that elderly people who use the bus for shopping may be cut off. Mr Dutton said: "The fact that this has come out of the blue without any forewarning only upholds my feeling that the way these services are contracted out is a great cause for concern. "I am now of the opinion that the people of Petersfield have been left in the lurch, especially the parents who rely on it to get their children to and from school. "At the present time, the weather is fine, but if there is no contract by winter, then it will be grim for the people from all these areas. I have great concern for them." He added that many people from his constituency relied on the bus to reach the town centre and did not have cars. "Remember that many of the people who use the service are from one of the most deprived areas of Petersfield," said Mr Dutton. "I am extremely disappointed that this area of the town is being disregarded in this way. "The method of announcing this has been through the bus drivers, who told their passengers. "We have heard nothing from the bus company and nothing from the county council. "I think this is a disturbing lack of public relations." Last November, there was a mass outcry when the county council announced local bus subsidy contracts for the Petersfield area were about to be renegotiated. Many feared bus services to Froxfield and Buriton would be affected in the contract renewal, which took place in June this year. But it appears the circular 94 bus - which takes in Moggs Mead, Rival Moor Road, Durford Road, Sheet and The Causeway - is the service most under threat. Michael Dance, operations director at Minerva Accord told The Herald that the company would continue to run the 95 service to villages surrounding the town, but that Hampshire County Council had decided to look elsewhere for the 94 route. He said: "The reason the contract is ending is down to costs. However, we are going to continue part of the service - the 95 - until the end of the year. "The 94 is going to another contractor. "We gave the county council a quote for an extension and they said it was not affordable so they went out to the market." In a tight-lipped response by Hampshire County Council, a spokesman refused to confirm whether a replacement service for the 94 route would be ready by Monday. A statement said: "Due to negotiations still being under way, we have to observe contractual confidentiality. "I can, however, say that those customers who have contacted the council about the 94/95 bus services will be advised of our decision by telephone and that we will be putting up timetables from the new operator as soon as they are ready and of course providing the information to the public."
