FRUSTRATED Prudhoe residents say they have ‘hit a brick wall’ in trying to reinstate a bus service to a well-populated part of the town.

Last year, a petition to extend bus routes in the town to include the areas of West Wylam, Oaklands, Moor Road and South Road, attracted 800 signatures.

And in December, a group of residents met with representatives from bus company Go North East, Northumberland County Council and Hexham MP Guy Opperman.

But the group was disappointed with the meeting and members claim they are not being listened to properly.

South Road resident George McCreedy said: “I was disappointed with the meeting; I felt they had already agreed a plan of action before speaking with us.

“We’re not being listened to. We have a petition with over 800 signatures, but we’re hitting a brick wall at the moment.

“The people who live up at the top of the town are becoming isolated and have to spend their money on taxis.

“The parking spaces in town are being taken up by people driving down before catching a bus from Front Street, and I don’t blame them because it’s a very long walk.”

Christine Rollingson added: “We all felt it was cut and dried before we got there. We didn’t get very far with them. They’re not really budging on it.” 

The previous Arriva 604 service ran hourly from Newcastle to Prudhoe, including the West Wylam, Oaklands, Moor Road and South Road areas.

But current operator Go North East has since re-routed the bus away from that area.

The number 10 buses, which regularly run from Newcastle to Hexham, only stop at Front Street and Prudhoe train station.

The 686 service does operate between West Wylam, Moor Road, Highfield Lane and Prudhoe Front Street - but the last bus arrives at 2pm.

But stakeholder for Go North East Tom Dodds says that low passenger numbers mean that reinstating the route is not financially viable.

He said: “We continue to work with the county council to examine opportunities to improve Prudhoe’s bus services, but in the current climate, that means any changes need to be financially viable.

“Our experience of running the town service 111 in years gone by does not suggest there would be enough new passengers to cover the extra costs.

“We always welcome suggestions from our customers and I’ll be pleased to meet again with local people to examine any constructive ideas.”

Hexham MP Guy Opperman suggested the solution could lie with Prudhoe Town Council.

He said: “There are solutions to this in terms of finance which can be addressed either by using section 106 funding from the Gentoo development at Prudhoe hospital, or with assistance from Prudhoe Town Council, which could provide financial support for key bus services in the town.”

However Mr McCreedy, who is a town councillor but attended the meeting as a resident, said he feels these suggestions are unrealistic.

He said: “That is quite a large sum of money; I can’t see the town council supporting that.

“And the Prudhoe Hospital development won’t be finished for years yet, so that section 106 money is not going to help us in the short term.”