The future of the railbus
Oxfordshire County Council is reviewing subsidised bus services in the Witney/Chipping Norton area, including several buses in Charlbury. The council is seeking to make £61m of savings over all its activities, and it is likely that services will be reduced as a result.
The X9 (Chipping Norton/Witney) is likely to continue largely unaffected, though the late evening journeys on Fridays and Saturdays are unlikely to continue. These were introduced a couple of years ago by RH Transport and have never attracted significant patronage. The S3 service to Oxford is unsubsidised and will therefore continue as at present.
However, the C1 station bus has been suggested for withdrawal, together with the "on demand" T1 service that can be booked during the day. Though the T1 is very little used (with perhaps one passenger a day), the C1 railbus, which meets most peak-time trains, is a very popular service with Charlbury people. Its withdrawal would be greatly felt in the town, not least in the effect on the station car park which is often full even with the new extension.
Working together, the Cotswold Line Promotion Group, Charlbury Town Council, and parish councils in the Wychwoods have proposed that the C1 is merged with the X8A daytime service from Kingham station. This would provide an all-day service between Charlbury, Kingham station, the Wychwoods and Leafield, bringing more people into Charlbury town centre, as well as retaining the existing C1 journeys for peak-hour trains.
In theory this would provide the same service at a greatly reduced subsidy level. However, this does of course presume that a bus operator would be prepared to bid for such a service at a level that the County Council could afford.
If OCC takes up this or any other suggestions, tenders will be sought over the winter and a decision will be made in March, with changes due to take effect from June.
Richard Fairhurst · Fri 15 Nov 2013, 16:34 · Link