Vital bus services have been saved in Poole with the award of 20 contracts to Wilts & Dorset.

The services have been secured for eight years and cover a variety of daytime, evening and Sunday routes, all supported by Borough of Poole.

As council cuts bite, the council’s transportation service has made an annual £100,000 reduction by retendering contracts early and awarding for a longer period.

Major residential areas such as Canford Heath, Hamworthy, Turlin Moor and Creekmoor, Broadstone, Bourne Estate and Alderney will now keep their evening and Sunday buses.

And essential daytime services including Route 7 around the Bloxworth Estate to Upper Parkstone and Tower Park, service 15 hourly from Poole to Bournemouth Hospital and service 32 to Oakdale, Broadstone and Merley have been retained.

“We are delighted to have been able to secure the continued operation of vital bus services for residents in Poole,” said John McVey for Borough of Poole.

“By working in partnership with Wilts & Dorset we have been able to achieve the level of savings needed without compromising on the level of service residents expect when using public transport in the area.”

Ed Wills, divisional director at Wilts & Dorset said: “Thankfully by achieving passenger growth of nine per cent due to the many difficult changes we have made to the network over the years, we can sustain our network of services in the area despite the rising fuel costs.

“Winning the tenders means that our customers can continue to rely on their bus services,” he added.