Waterside Changemakers launches Better Buses for the Waterside campaign as survey shows residents are ‘dissatisfied’ with current Bluestar services

NEW Forest residents on the Waterside are missing out on job opportunities and hospital appointments due to a lack of bus services, a campaign group says.

Waterside Changemakers is calling on bus operator Bluestar to boost what it offers to the area after “harrowing” talks with users.

It has launched the Better Buses for the Waterside campaign and is calling on the company to launch a consultation on what residents want from the service.

The group says its survey of 272 residents found almost two thirds think bus frequency in the Waterside is either “poor” (44.5%) or “very poor” (19.5%).

Many also said they find the existing services unreliable, with 36.4% saying reliability is “poor”, while 16.5% rated it “very poor”.

Of the respondents, 37.4% said they were dependent on buses as they had no access to a car. Some said they had been forced to turn down job offers because they could not rely on public transport to get there.

Others described having to walk long distances because buses failed to serve some parts of the Waterside in the evening, such as those in Calshot for whom the last bus from Southampton departs at 5.50pm.

Campaign spokesperson Serena Merritt told the A&T: “Our survey results show that many of those most affected by a poor bus service in the Waterside are vulnerable or at risk of becoming so because of a lack of public services or opportunities.

“Unreliable and infrequent buses have damaging knock-on effects on the lives of people of all ages.”

She added: “It’s been harrowing talking to people and hearing how they struggle to make hospital appointments and reach workplaces.

“There is a real risk that smaller towns and villages like Marchwood, Holbury, Blackfield, Langley and Calshot are simply going to be left behind. I worry for the elderly who become socially isolated but also the young people denied job opportunities because of the lack of reliable public transport.

“Communities in the Waterside are crying out for a better bus service and we will help ensure their voices are heard.”

The area is served by Bluestar 8, which links Southampton with Hythe via Totton, Pooksgreen and Applemore, and Bluestar 9, which links the city with Langley, Fawley and Calshot via Applemore, Dibden Purlieu, Hythe, Netley View, Holbury and Blackfield.

Tom Wardle, who helped set up Waterside Changemakers, said: “A regular and reliable bus service could be a real lifeline for people on the Waterside, connecting people with job opportunities, schools and colleges, and ensuring that people living in semi-rural areas don’t feel socially isolated.

"We are calling on Bluestar to come out to Waterside communities and speak to people about what improvements they would want to see to the bus service and explore ways to encourage as many people as possible to use the bus."

A wish list from the group includes direct routes to Lymington and Southampton General Hospital, a summer service to Lepe beach, more frequent evening services and improved routes through Marchwood.

Bluestar general manager Richard Tyldsley explained support from Hampshire County Council meant the Bluestar 9 route would be increased to services every 20 minutes from September.

He added: “We are encouraged that the number of journeys on this service has grown by 8% over the past year and we hope the improved frequency will help this trend continue.

“Bluestar 8 also saw numbers drop significantly during Covid, but we have continued to operate an hourly service. Originally continuing past Hythe to Calshot, we have transferred this stretch of the route to Bluestar 9.”

He explained services were reviewed “regularly” but there were not currently enough passengers to justify an increase.

He added: “Both these routes are currently affected by traffic congestion and road works, both on the Totton bypass and the Redbridge flyover, [which] poses significant challenges for our team, in terms of punctuality and my colleagues work very hard to minimise any disruption.

“I’m also pleased to note Hampshire County Council is introducing two large-scale bus priority schemes, which I expect to significantly improve reliability.

“In the meantime, I’d like to thank those who travel with us across Waterside for their understanding if some of our buses are not always as punctual as we would like them to be.”