Stagecoach: Bus disruption in Basingstoke due to staffing

Passengers in the town are facing a wide variation in the quality of services, with one resident calling it 'horrendous'.

Fidelma Charlton, from South Ham, said: "The bus is cancelled a hell of a lot, the 3 is the worst, especially when you have an appointment.

"You miss an appointment, then you get to the doctors and they say no, sorry you've missed it. It's horrendous actually, two come at once sometimes."

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Bella, a student at Peter Simmonds college and a Basingstoke resident, explained that the services affect her travel by train. She added: "I was going to get the bus an hour ago, and it was cancelled."

A South Ham resident explained that they have not had any problems with buses in the area.

Leslie, from South Ham, said: "On the whole, they aren't too bad, yesterday a couple came together. Not too good when they cancel it 75 per cent of the time, now I look at the app before, otherwise I have to pay charges for the gym when it's late." 

June Allabush pointed to the sign at the bus station, where it read 'cancelled'. She continued: "This one is cancelled now, one day last week there were five or six cancelled on one day.

"I rely on the bus, I go to the gym three times a week, and if it's cancelled you are late. This week they have been okay."

Emma, from Baughurst, said she doesn't use the bus often, but 'hasn't had that many problems recently'. She added: "They aren't on time, but usually within a few minutes at least."

A Stagecoach spokesperson said: “We were recently experiencing some staffing challenges which have had an impact on some of our bus services across Basingstoke.

"Our teams are working incredibly hard to ensure the vast majority of local services continue to run as normal.

"We are actively recruiting for trainee and qualified bus drivers and have drivers progressing through our training school at present.

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"In the meantime, we have a number of loan bus drivers from neighbouring depots within the business to minimise impact and ensure key services across the network are operated.

"We understand the importance of reliable public transport and cancellations to services are a very last resort, and are kept to a minimum.

"However, we appreciate that cancellations are frustrating and would like to sincerely thank all of our passengers for their patience and understanding.”