Carlisle bus service branded 'not fit for purpose' by resident

Leanne Stevenson said that frequent cancellations, late services and broken-down buses have made the service ‘unusable’ in Carlisle.

In response, Stagecoach said that they have been able to operate more than 97 per cent of services despite a number of ‘challenges’.

“The service has gone downhill drastically,” said Leanne.

“There's barely any buses running on time at the moment and as a parent who takes her children to Newman School, I've seen a huge rise in traffic around the school because parents are now having to opt to take their kids to and from school themselves in order for them to get there on time and get home safely.”

Leanne also said that the 67 service, which goes past St John Henry Newman school had been ‘frequently’ late during school exam season causing some children to be late for GCSE exams.

“During exam period, buses weren't tearing up, so kids weren't getting to school in time for their exams, which was very stressful for them.

“I've just gone out this morning with my kids and there was another bus stranded because it's broken down again

“Buses after buses are just breaking because they're just useless - it's just absolute chaos and I think there's a lot more traffic on the road in Carlisle now because the reason the bus is running.”

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In response to her claims, a Stagecoach Spokesperson said: "We are aware of some issues which have been affecting the reliability of our 67 service recently, many of which are outside of our control.

“Whilst we acknowledge there have been a small number of breakdowns, the service has also been affected in recent weeks by significant roadworks such as the closure of Belle Vue at the same time as Blackwell Road, St Nicholas Bridges and St Nicholas Street meaning journeys have either been delayed or diverted.

“Despite these challenges, we have still been able to operate over 97 per cent of our journeys and our dedicated depot team work hard to deliver reliable services in the City".