Cumbria County Council is appealing to the people of Kendal for help finding a solution to the town's public transport problem.
A round of crucial consultations has been organised to help the county council's South Lakes local committee get a picture of how bus services might be reorganised to better serve the town.
One thousand households in Kendal will be contacted directly by telephone and the council hopes that hundreds of people will take the time to complete an on-line version of the survey which can be seen at www.cumbria.gov.uk
The consultations will take to the street on Saturday 19th November when a special bus will be parked on Stricklandgate. Local councillors and council staff will be on board to listen to residents views between 11am and 2pm.
Also, a public meeting will be held at 7pm on Tuesday, 22nd November, at the county offices in Kendal, to discuss plans for the replacement network of bus services.
The move comes after the local committee stepped-in with funding to retain town centre services in the aftermath of bus company Stagecoach's decision to withdraw its commercial services in the town (see notes).
The committee's short-term solution involves tendering for contract to maintain current services from 22nd January when Stagecoach’s services cease, until the beginning of April.
In a search of a long-term solution, county council is investigating the introduction of a redesigned service network which better suits the needs of the people of Kendal and encourages more people to use the buses and return services towards commercial viability.
Alan Bobbett, chairman of the South Lakes local committee, said: "It is hard to stress just how important these consultations are. We are asking the people of Kendal to help us to help them. We have stepped in to support the bus routes in town for the time being, but we have to try to find a way to make it commercially viable for operators to offer bus services in town.
"If you get a phone call as part of our survey, please take a few moments to answer the questions. Complete the on-line survey if you can visit the special bus on Stricklandgate on the 19th November or attend the public meeting on the 22nd.
"The information you provide could help shape the future of bus services in the town," he said.
Anyone who cannot take part in the consultation by any of the means above, can make suggestions on how the services should be changed or which parts of the existing network should remain unchanged by writing to Public Transport, Cumbria County Council, The Courts, Carlisle, CA3 8NA or e.mail at publictransport@cumbriacc.gov.uk