Axing of bus service has caused chaos, parents say

Parents have said the the removal of a bus service for students trying to get to college has led to "chaos."

Since the start of the new academic year, Truro & Penwith College is no longer providing a tendered bus service for students living in Falmouth.

Students affected were advised to use local trains instead - with free shuttle buses then available between Truro rail station and the college's campus.

The college apologised for the disruption but said it had to ensure its investment in its transport network was as efficient as possible to cater for demand from students.

Stacey Guthrie's daughter used to catch the previous tendered bus from Falmouth to get to college last year and said the train was not a practical alternative.

She said: "The train is already oversubscribed. With a bursary you don't get a train pass - you have to pay for the tickets and the college will reimburse you some of it. That was really complicated.

"I spent the entire summer trying to get through to the college to say 'can somebody help me sort this out because I can't get my head around how she's going to get there'," she said.

Guthrie said her daughter had been late to class one day last week after cancellations to some Great Western Railways (GWR) services between Falmouth and Truro.

She feared her daughter might be reluctant to go into lessons in future because of the added stress and anxiety caused.

She said: "It's just chaos. We should be able to expect our children to be able to get on one form of public transport and get them to college.

"Now young people have to either go to college or get a job, how can they do that if the first barrier to that is they can't get to college on time or at all?"

GWR apologised for disruption to services last week - it said it was caused by a faulty train and passengers had been able to use tickets on local buses instead.

Other parents and students said the shuttle buses failed to accommodate students who started or finished at irregular times - leaving some having to pay for public transport instead.

The Labour MP for Truro and Falmouth, Jayne Kirkham, who held a summit this summer on the changes, said problems were now "becoming clear".

She added: "I will continue to work closely with students, their families, the college and transport companies to try to solve those questions.

"I am also raising in Parliament, and directly with the Prime Minister, the fact that our students in Cornwall, and everyone here who uses public transport, suffer a disadvantage compared to those in urban areas.

"I will continue to push for more and better public transport here in Cornwall."

Truro & Penwith College said it recognised the concern around the changes and it apologised for the uncertainty and disruption caused.

It said there would be a "settling-in period" for the new arrangements at the start of the new academic year.

In a statement, it added: "The college reviews its transport network ahead of each academic year to balance student demand, available capacity, safety, route viability and the wider public transport services operating across Cornwall.

"As a result, we have been working closely with our transport providers to monitor new demand, increase capacity and introduce additional services and travel options.

"We will continue reviewing the arrangements and making changes where these are needed and operationally possible.

"Our priority is to ensure students can attend college safely and reliably."

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