WINNERS and losers are emerging after Oxfordshire County Council released details of its latest shake-up of county bus services.

Sweeping changes have been introduced after an annual review of services across the county, which follows cuts in the council’s transport budget.

Services which will have subsidies withdrawn from May 31 are provided by Thames Travel, Stagecoach, Go Ride and Oxfordshire County Council Integraterd Trasnsport Unit.

The buses include the Sunday X47 service from Ardington to Wantage, Ashbury, and Swindon, peak time Abingdon town services on the 40, 41, 42 and 44 routes and the number 65 Faringdon to Swindon bus, which will be replaced by a Dial-a-Ride service.

Leader of Abingdon town council Sandy Lovatt said he is concerned about the loss of the Abingdon town services.

He said: “I am extremely anxious that we might be losing services that serve the hospital.

“People have to spend hours at the hospital waiting for appointments as it is without having to wait a long time for buses home.

“We need these services because they cover routes that go into the estate and not just along the Oxford Road and Radley Road. There’s a good service from the town centre to the hospital, but not through the outlying estates.”

Jan Hughes, a volunteer at the 35 Ock Street community cafe in Abingdon, said the loss of the services at peak times will affect many Drayton Road and Preston Road estate pensioners.

He said these people use the buses to go shopping or to get to the hospital, leaving them with more than half a mile to walk to the bus stops on the main arteries through the town.

Hugh Jaeger of Bus Users Oxford said he had some sympathy with council having to cut routes if passenger numbers were very low, but said he also sympathised with passengers left without transport.

On some routes the council has withdrawn subsidies, but the operators have agreed to continue to run them on a commercial basis.

But Mr Jaeger said there is a danger if providers find the routes non-profitable the services will be pulled and not replaced.

However, some routes have been saved from closure.

After a campaign by Oxfordshire county councillor Laura Price and Witney bus users, the local authority agreed to shelve for another year plans to scrap Witney town services on the 213, 214 and 215 routes.She added: “I’m absolutely delighted that this service has been saved.

The council’s overall government funding has been cut by £90m from 2009 to 2014. It estimates saving £400k from the current review of bus services and today will outline plans to save a further £6m from its annual £30m transport budget.

Services axed

  • Services 40, 41 and 42 Abingdon Town – Peak services withdrawn.
  • Service 63, Southmoor, Hinton Waldrist, Longworth, Appleton, Oxford, Saturday service withdrawn.
  • Service 65, Faringdon to Swindon, Service withdrawn – replaced by Dial-a-Ride.
  • Service 66, Swindon to Oxford, Some peak services withdrawn.
  • Service 1/32/X32/X1, Sunday service between Grove, Wantage and Didcot, withdrawn.
  • Service X47, Ardington to Swindon, Saturday service withdrawn.
  • Service M1/M2 Watlington to Reading, Some services withdrawn.
  • Services B1/B2/B8, Banbury to Bodicote, Ruscote and Hardwick, Sunday service withdrawn.

Services remaining

  • Service 4, Cumnor to Wootton and Abingdon, services to continue under Oxford Bus Company.
  • Service 31, Wantage to Abingdon and Oxford, service to continue under Stagecoach.
  • Service 38, Wantage and Grove, some minor changes with new operator Thames Travel.
  • Service 43, Eaton to Abingdon, service unchanged.
  • Service 40, 41, 42, 44, Peak Abingdon services and Abingdon to Oxford, off peak services unchanged, new operator Thames Travel.
  • Service 61, Faringdon Town, service unchanged.
  • Service 63 Southmoor to Oxford, new peak time routes.
  • Service 67,67A,67B, Wantage to Faringdon, service largely unchanged.
  • Services 83/84, service unchanged.
  • Service 90, Lambourn to Swindon, service largely unchanged.
  • Service 218, Wytham to Oxford, service largely unchanged.
  • Service A1 Ardington to Wantage and Didcot, revised timetable.
  • Services, 1/32/X1/X32, Ardington to Didcot, some weekday changes unlikely Line 40, High Wycombe to Thame, service largely unchanged with extra journeys and new operator Carousel Buses.
  • Service 46, Drayton to Abingdon, service continues on Monday only.
  • Services 91/92/93, services unchanged but to be run commercially.
  • Services 94/95, Didcot to Hagbourne, revised timetable.
  • Services 97 to 114, Wallingford to Abingdon, revised timetable.
  • Service 98, Great Western Park to Didcot, service unchanged.
  • Services 120, 121, 123, 124, Thame and Watlington, services largely unchanged.
  • Services 125, 126 and 131, services largely unchanged.
  • Service 134, Goring to Wallingford, service largely unchanged.
  • Service 135, Goring to Wallingford, under discussion.
  • Service T1, Watlington to Oxford, service largely unchanged.
  • Service T2, Culham village, frequency increased.
  • Service 10, city centre, service largely unchanged.
  • Services 12/12C, City centre to Cowley, service largely unchanged but operated commercially.
  • Service 14/14A, Oxford station to John Radcliffe, service largely unchanged, but operated commercially.
  • Service 16/16A Oxford City to Minchery Farm, service unchanged but operated commercially.
  • Services 213, 214, 215, Witney, service unchanged.
  • Service V1, Witney to Deer Park, slightly revised times.
  • Service V12/V19, Wychwood to Chipping Norton, service unchanged.
  • Service X10, Wychwood to Burford, some timetable changes.
  • Service 8, Brackley to Bicester, under review.
  • Service 504, Hornton to Banbury, some timetable changes.
  • Service S4, Banbury to Oxford, some revisions, frequency increased on some services.