Bus route could return to estate cut-off by cutbacks

Thornton’s Pheasant’s Wood currently has no regular public transport following the decision by Catch22 to end it’s number 23 service last month.

The service was operated on a commercial basis following an end to subsidised services, operated by Stagecoach, last year.

Now Coun Andrea Kay is hopeful of securing funding for a new route on the estate which will link it to a number of major towns and cities.

She said: “We are in talks to get a bus back to Pheasant’s Wood.

“Catch22 tried earlier this year with a service operated commercially but they just couldn’t make it work.

“I thank them for trying.

“Hopefully now we will have a chance to bring bus services back.”

Coun Kay is hoping funding can be secured to include Pheasants Wood in the route of the 75 service which links Fleetwood to Preston.

She believes a decision could be made at County Hall next month.

She said: “We are hoping this is going to happen.

“It will link the area to Fleetwood, to Cleveleys, to Poulton and even to Preston.

“We’re hoping we might have this in place for December, it will be like an early Christmas present for people in Thornton.”

The changed route would be subsidised by Lancashire County Council.

Coun Kay said: “We’re just getting it signed off and then it can go out to tender, for operators to bid for the route.”

Last year Lancashire County Council axed subsidies for dozens of bus routes across the county including the 85 route which linked Poulton to Fleetwood via Thornton.

Stagecoach, which operated the service, decided not to continue it as a commercial route. Coun Kay hopes a number of operators will submit bids to run the revised service. Preston Bus currently operates the services on the 75 route