A SCHOOL bus route has been axed following a review of Poole council’s subsidies for bus services.

Morebus’ 445 service, which operates between Bearwood, Merley, and Allenbourn School in Wimborne, will stop running at the end of May to coincide with the bus company’s summer timetable change.

The service will be partially replaced with an amended 4 route from Merley, which will be extended to and from Allenbourn School. However, Bearwood will no longer be served.

Getting rid of the route will save £24,600 for the council, but it will affect Bearwood pupils who rely on the service.

It follows a consultation carried out in September and October last year to which 250 people responded. In addition more than 200 bus passengers on the potentially affected routes were invited to give their views.

Five services – the 7, 11, 32, 445, and H1 – were earmarked for a reduction in or removal of the bus subsidy from the borough.

The Route and Branch Group was tasked with recommending cuts to the services which would achieve savings of £70,000 for 2018/19. Borough figures show that in the last financial year it spent £617,000 subsidising bus services, and its forecast for this year is £532,000.

The group advised transport members to “bear in mind” that traffic congestion between Merley and Wimborne is increasing and very few of the borough’s schools now have dedicated school buses.

Councillors decided the 6.50am journey from Broadstone on a Saturday on the Yellow Buses H1 service will also be withdrawn from April 9.

Cutting the H1’s Saturday service will achieve just over £800 in savings and is not expected to have a high impact on passengers.

Both service cuts will achieve total savings of around £55,000 - £15,000 short of the £70,000 target.

Of this total, £30,000 has been achieved through the council negotiating contract price reductions with Morebus.

Most bus routes in Poole operate without subsidy. However, some evening and weekend services, plus those operating away from the main roads, require financial support to be viable.

Cllr Ian Potter, cabinet portfolio holder for planning, regeneration and transportation, said: “I am grateful to everyone who took time to respond to the consultation and make the council aware of the potential impact of the changes. This influenced the decisions taken."

Julian McLaughlin, head of growth and infrastructure, added: "I am particularly pleased that the majority of savings have been created through positive negotiation with the bus operators rather than reducing services.”