The first meeting of the B&NES Rural Transport Group has been called for Monday, 10th June, consisting of Parish and Town Councils, B&NES Council, Community Transport and Bus Service Operators.

The initiative is being led by Rosemary Naish and David Orme – both local people who have been pushing for a solution to the lack of rural transport in both the Somer Valley and the Chew Valley.

“The aim is to develop joined-up thinking when it comes to rural transport, by firstly getting a better understanding of the needs of residents for transport, and then bringing together all the various providers (bus/community transport/car sharers etc) to work together in a coordinated way,” said Rosemary Naish, who has been working on a community transport solution for the past year.

This approach has developed out of feedback from a number of public and community meetings, as well as the B&NES Parish Liaison. In April last year, Timsbury Parish Council held an initial meeting to discuss the issue, inviting other parishes in Bath and North East Somerset to participate. It was then discussed at the Somer Valley Forum meeting in September 2018, with representatives from community transport providers presenting on their local services.

Further discussions were held with Forum Chairs, ALCA, and the voluntary and community sector. In addition, two public meetings were held, organised by Timsbury and Farmborough Parish Councils respectively, and another by Dunkerton and Tunley Parish Council. All these meetings focused on the recent reduction in services on the 179 route by First bus.

“No-one can say we haven’t had enough meetings about it,” said David Orme, local community leader and Chair of Dunkerton and Tunley Parish Council.

“We believe now that local people need to lead the way, and so we have invited a wide range of community leaders to this first meeting in order to get things moving by agreeing a plan on the 10th June and getting on with it.”

It will be interesting to see how this group develops; whether it can truly break down the barriers and bring together all those concerned to tackle particularly pressing issues, such as the future of the 179 bus. Whilst this first meeting is invitation only, anyone interested in finding out further details should contact: 01761 453660.