Sponsored by
Bus driver wrong turn highlights route 'teething problems'
A bus passenger claims he had to tell a driver how to get to his destination after a transport company moved its jobs to depots outside the area.
Peterlee resident David Taylor-Gooby says he was on the number 31 Peterlee to Sunderland service when the bus driver took a wrong turn from Easington Village into Easington Colliery – when it should have travelled straight on to Hawthorn Village.
Easington Labour Party secretary Mr Taylor-Gooby, who was travelling to Sunderland University, said: "He wasn't supposed to do that. A lot of people were worried.
"He showed me a route plan and I sat with him and showed him the way."
Mr Taylor-Gooby said there was about half a dozen people on the bus and added: "The driver had come from Stockton and didn't know the area."
His comments come as Don Milsom, councillor for Peterlee's Passfield ward, said the number 24 Hartlepool to Peterlee service had failed to turn up twice last week.
He had been "inundated" with complaints from residents who said the bus was regularly up to 20 minutes late.
The Mail reported in December that Arriva was to make 15 redundancies between the Peterlee depot, in Davy Drive, and its depot in Bishop Auckland.
Some bus services no longer run from the Peterlee depot, with drivers coming from depots in Stockton, Belmont and Bishop Auckland.
Mr Taylor-Gooby said when the bus service changes were approved by Durham County Council in December, people were reassured there would be no deterioration of services.
He has called for the council to take a "more robust" attitude to regulating transport services in east Durham.
An Arriva spokesman said: "We are very sorry for any problems that may have occurred recently in connection with the restructuring of our fleet.
"We have had some teething problems, but these have been few and far between and, hopefully, will be resolved as soon as possible.
"Drivers based at our Peterlee depot still operate the service 24 and therefore incidents should not occur on this route. We will look into the reliability concerns and address these issues."
A council spokeswoman said assurances had been previously sought from Arriva and added: "Following a number of complaints received at the beginning of last week, we have been in regular contact with Arriva to ensure the company does deliver on the assurances they provided at our initial meeting.
"We are aware of some the problems they have encountered and urged they take the necessary action to run a reliable and punctual service."
The council vowed to continue to monitor Arriva's performance.
Email to a friend
Print this page- VIDEO: 999 call police car ploughs into house
- Toon target set to seal ‘dream’ move
- TRANSFER RUMOURS - Thursday, May 24: Newcastle, Demba Ba, Arsenal, Chelsea, Man City deny Tevez rumours, Man Utd, Porto
- TRANSFER RUMOURS - Friday, May 25: Man city, Man utd, Spurs, Arsenal,
- Arrests after trap driver injured
Looking for...
Featured advertisers
Jobs
Search for a job
Motors
Search for a car
Property
Search for a house
Weather for Hartlepool
Sunday 27 May 2012
Today
Sunny
Temperature: 9 C to 21 C
Wind Speed: 10 mph
Wind direction: North east
Tomorrow
Sunny
Temperature: 9 C to 22 C
Wind Speed: 10 mph
Wind direction: East
