"The 153 is a county contracted service and we are planning to withdraw it from 7th November.

The other subsidised routes in this area fit together to form a full week´s work (Monday to Saturday) for a single bus, including a school run and then various village services through out the week. This is the most efficient way to contract services but the 153 runs as a "stand alone" contract on a Wednesday only and as a result is more expensive.

We are therefore withdrawing the sections of route which are either poorly used or have alternative services at a similar time and adjusting another existing contract to include the rest.

All the villages on the 153 route do have an alternative subsidised bus route. Looking at how the 153 is actually used, the section north of Stewkley is barely used with an average of 1.5 passengers per week (none on some weeks) as is withdrawn.

The section from Aston Abbots through to Mursley has been fitted into another existing contract giving us a similarly timed journey at minimal cost.

Around 6 - 7 passengers a week use the 153 from Stewkley but we also provide a bus at almost the same time into Leighton Buzzard and Bletchley on the same day. This carries slightly more passengers on average so we have kept this one on. Passengers from Stewkley still have a Friday morning bus into Aylesbury."