A combination of falling passenger numbers and increased traffic congestion delaying services has led to the Nu Venture bus company announcing a raft of timetable changes to start later this month.
The changes will affect services in Maidstone, Malling and Tonbridge and will come onto effect on January 20.
Among those to go altogether are the 55, connecting Ringlestone to Maidstone, and the 88 between Kings Hill and Maidstone. The company said that too few passengers have made both routes unviable.
The affected routes also include the Nos 13 and 14, from Hollingbourne to the Wheatsheaf, with a new route at Langley Heath to avoid the the frequent traffic delays in the narrowest section of Horseshoes Lane.
The 78 bus between Barming and Fant will be reduced to just one return journey per day. The company said that recent history had seen the service suffer frequent diversions as a result of road closures, and the uncertainty had led to a drop-off in customers.
It also said that unregulated parking in roads such as Hackney Road in Fant had made it difficult for buses to pass safely through the area.
That point had previously highlighted been by local ward councillor Paul Harper, who blamed much of the parking problems on the unregulated expansion of houses in multiple occupation (HMOs) in the area.
In Tonbridge, the 211 has also had to be “restructured” because traffic congestion in the town had made the previous timetable unreliable.
Broadly, the 211 will now cover Brook Street, St Margaret Clitherow School and Deakin Leas, while a 212 bus will cover Barden Park and the Tonbridge Cottage Hospital.
Some areas are seeing extra services.
The 772, from West Malling to Tonbridge, will now additionally serve Aylesford Station and Larkfield in the morning to provide a direct link for students to reach Hadlow College. In the afternoon, they will be served by the 771.
The 29 service, from Peters Village to Maidstone, will now also loop around the Ringlestone estate to offer some compensation to residents there for the loss of the 55.
There are also minor alterations to the services No 59 from Grafty Green to Maidstone; No 60 Maidstone to Hermitage Park via Maidstone Hospital; No 70 Wrotham to Lunsford Park, which becomes Monday only.
Timetable changes will affect services 70, 77, 130A, 169, 173, 197 and 771, but in addition the company is warning that the 130 and 130A services from Penenden Heath to Maidstone East Station will be significantly disrupted during the spring due to planned major roadworks in Penenden Heath.
The revised bus times can be viewed here.
Inquiries can also be made to the company on 01622 882288.
