Six school bus routes facing the axe

5 hours ago

Chris Young

Local Democracy Reporting Service

The proposed cuts will be decided at a meeting on 24 July

Getty Images Two girls with their backs to the camera are getting on their school bus. The girls are both wearing grey skirts and coats. The bus is painted in a mixture of orange and white — The proposed cuts will be decided at a meeting on 24 July

Plans to axe six school bus routes in West Yorkshire have been described as "simply not acceptable" by a councillor in Bradford.

West Yorkshire Combined Authority (WYCA) is considering cutting three buses in Bradford, one in Calderdale and two in Leeds.

WYCA said the plan would help "create a more equitable service across West Yorkshire" saying there were walking and cycling routes available to pupils of some of the schools affected.

However, Green councillor Kevin Warnes, who represent Shipley on Bradford Council, said it was "critical" that bus travel networks were maintained and expanded.

WYCA, which subsidises numerous routes, will decide whether to move ahead with the changes on 24 July.

The decision comes after more than 3,700 people took part in a consultation on the future of these subsidised services.

The services facing the axe include:

B50 Eldwick to Beckfoot School
B99 Bradford city centre to Appleton Academy
S64 Baildon to Titus Salt School or S66 Baildon Primary to Titus Salt School
C6 Crossley Heath Grammar
S62 Cockburn School
SM25 Ilkley to St Mary's Menston

WYCA says walking and cycling routes are available for many of the routes affected by the cuts

Getty Images A group of school children arriving in the school yard with their bikes — WYCA says walking and cycling routes are available for many of the routes affected by the cuts

Referring to cuts to the Titus Salt School service, Warnes said: "Cuts are not an option.

"These transport links are essential to support local families and enable people to make sustainable travel choices."

He said school buses were an important way of mitigating traffic congestion.

"The withdrawal of any of these services is simply not acceptable."

Independent councillor for Bingley Marcus Deardon said he was worried the authority would cut other school bus services next year which had been passed to them by Bradford Council.

"These cuts will result in extra vehicles clogging up the highways and possibly making it impossible for some students to access these schools."

'Safe and secure'

According to the Local Democracy Reporting Service, WYCA said it would work with councils and schools to ensure children with special educational needs and disabilities are provided with transport.

It said it currently has arrangements in place for 328 buses carrying up to 20,000 pupils per day at a cost of £18.99m a year of which 45% as funded by the combined authority.

The remaining costs are funded by income from fares, council's across West Yorkshire and schools.

It said guidelines for value money criteria set a maximum subsidy of £2.35 per passenger trip from September 2025 and services that do not meet the criteria will be "considered for withdrawal".

Chair of WYCA's transport committee and Bradford Council leader Susan Hinchcliffe said: "It is vital that we provide safe and secure routes for children to get to school, and we want to ensure the policy is equitably applied across West Yorkshire.

"We will continue to engage with stakeholders and the parents and carers of the small number of children affected to ensure that every child has a suitable option to get to school."

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