ON behalf of bus users in Bolton using the 535/537, 519/520 & 68 routes, I’d graciously like to thank Cllr Chadwick for reluctantly accepting our petition at Wednesday’s full council meeting.

Handing the petition over outside or in a corridor as you suggested was not what was promised by Bolton Councils Democratic Services Department, and would have devalued the importance of the petition.

Residents who were eager to attend the meeting in support could not because there are not sufficient bus services. What I found disappointing was that Cllr Chadwick chose to spend most of his response time on a question from Cllr Andrew Martin, describing public transport in London and across the country over the last 30 years — attacking the previous coalition government, in particular the Lib Dems, rather than addressing the issue and fighting for services that we’ve lost in the borough.

As our Bolton Transport for Greater Manchester[TfGM] representative, Bolton bus users deserve better, irrespective to the services being commercially operated or subsidised Cllr Chadwick should be fighting as hard as residents to save these services.

Cllr Chadwick, as per the council meeting has now made a commitment to attend the Bolton Bus User Forum meetings and to consult with residents prior to any changes being made on any bus service in Bolton — and we will hold him to that. We look forward to him now taking our petitions to TfGM and fighting on behalf of residents to re-instate the services that have been lost.

Warren Fox

Bolton Bus Users Forum.