Plea to save bus service dismissed as 'bribe'

AN attempt to extend a bus service running linking Chipping Sodbury and Yate to Thornbury and Cribbs Causeway until June has been dismissed as an “election bribe”.

The 622 service will be axed from the start of April, along with many other subsidised bus routes in the West of England region.

The three councils in the region, including South Gloucestershire, said they couldn’t afford to increase the amount they pay to subsidise all of the services enough to cover rapidly-rising costs.

Conservative council leader Toby Savage urged Labour Metro Mayor Dan Norris to pay £785,000 to keep some routes going for a couple more months, until the new dial-aride WESTlink service, which launches in April, beds in.

But Mr Norris claimed the real reason behind the calls to keep the 622 service running was the local elections on May 4.

The two politicians disagreed on the request for extra cash during a meeting of the West of England Combined Authority on March 17.

Cllr Savage said: "The councils did want to extend a number of supported services over several months, and we built into our budgets the increased costs next year, at the levels