Kennethmont bus service concern
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VILLAGERS in Kennethmont claim the withdrawal of bus services could force them to leave.
As part of a reorganisation of bus timetables, only early morning and late afternoon school buses now serve the village.
Stagecoach lay blame for the change with Aberdeenshire Council and their spokesman Kim Mason said: "The service was contracted through Aberdeenshire Council who have changed the tender."
However, Aberdeenshire Council insist that the service change is an improvement on what was offered previously although it starts and finishes in Insch, leaving Kennethmont residents largely cut off from public transport
For villagers in Kennethmont, now bypassed by buses, the change is a devastating blow and Irene and Jimmy Meldrum, who used the bus to access connecting services to get them to hospital appointments in Aberdeen during treatment for cancer, are considering selling up their home and moving out.
Irene (70) and her husband Jimmy (74) have lived in the same house for 45 years.
Mrs Meldrum said: "I am not going to stay in a place where there is no public transport. We both have arthritis and Jimmy drives less and less. Without a bus service we are cut off. It is making Kennethmont an unattractive place to live. We will look to get nearer Inverurie or Westhill if the bus service has gone."
For more reaction to the bus changes see the Huntly Express - out now.
