A petition has been launched to stop the closure of Cardiff’s Number 56 bus route.
The route is due to close in January 2018, and is the only direct service covering the 2.7 miles from the Dorchester Road area of Penylan to Cardiff city centre.
Penylan’s local Liberal Democrat councillors are campaigning to keep the bus route, which they say is a vital link for the area’s elderly community.
Seventy-eight year old Penylan resident Teresa Margaret Jonker said that the bus was the only way for her to get into town from Colchester avenue. She called the petition “wonderful”, saying that the community in Penylan were “very proud” of their local Liberal Democrat councillors for the stand they had taken.
But she did acknowledge that the number 56 bus was sometimes under-filled, saying she hoped it would at least be kept running on peak times.
Cardiff Bus has defended the decision to stop the route. “This is not a decision that has been taken lightly and we apologise for any impact this will have on passengers,” said Gareth Stevens, commercial manager of the company. He added that the high-frequency 57 and 58 buses will be passing through Penylan frequently, including overnight on weekends.
The 1, 2, 52, 64 and 65 bus routes will also continue to serve the area, but the Dorchester Avenue, Baron’s Court Road and Blenheim Road stops will no longer be in use.
The closure follows fare increases on all Cardiff Bus routes in October this year. Single ticket prices went up by 10p to £1.90, and day passes rose by 20p to £3.80.
The firm has blamed increased congestion in Cardiff for making its services more expensive to run.
