Posted: 12:37 PM, August 2, 2022
The last buses from Ipswich town center to most estates in the town are likely to be axed from the end of September as part of the council’s cost-cutting package.
The last buses from Tower Ramparts currently leave around 11pm Monday to Saturday – but the number of last buses is relatively low.
These services are subsidized by the council, which pays between £3.11 and £7.62 for each passenger who buys a £1.80 ticket for the service.
The last buses will run from 10 p.m.
The changes are likely to be implemented from September 25.
Ipswich Executive Council will make a final decision on the changes at its meeting next week.
It has so far spent £138,000 a year subsidizing Sunday and bank holiday services – and the last buses of the day throughout the week.
However, if this level of service is to be maintained, the subsidy will need to rise to £196,000 a year – a 40% increase.
The borough plans to use an extra £30,000 a year from Cromwell Square parking charges to support bus subsidies – but this does not cover the overall cost of maintaining existing services.
So the last service of the day on routes 3E, 5E, 8, 9 and 13 will be disrupted, but the council said it would look to restore those services if additional funding could be found at a later date.
Phil Smart, portfolio holder for the environment, said: “The council remains committed to bus services in Ipswich, but with the funding required far above budget – even with the extra money from Cromwell Square – we cannot afford to We finance all the bus services that we currently do.
“I am pleased that we can continue to support most of the existing services. If additional funding becomes available or costs decrease sufficiently in the future, we will reinstate the other services.”
Ipswich Buses services have been disrupted in the evenings since the lockdown for the past two years – with services to most parts of the town reduced from two hours to one after 8pm.
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