Derek Deedman

Following the report in the summer edition of the Bramber Castle Focus it has been confirmed that the Sunday 100 bus service from Pulborough to Burgess Hill through Steyning, Bramber, Upper Beeding and Small Dole was withdrawn from 7 October. This leaves Small Dole with no public transport services on Sundays.

And now the winter schedule for the 2A bus service to/from Shoreham to Steyning means that bus users from Small Dole would have to wait in Upper Beeding for nearly an hour both ways to make the trip to Shoreham/Worthing. Previously there was only a few minutes to wait between the 100 and 2A bus services at the Rising Sun in Upper Beeding to go to Shoreham with a bit longer coming back. The new times means that it is unlikely anyone will now use public transport to go to Shoreham/Worthing!

Derek Deedman has taken this up with both the County Council (which supports the 100) and Brighton & Hove Buses (which runs the 2A), but neither is prepared to change their respective timetables because of the need to tie in with 5/6 school times on the 100 route and the impact on times with other bus services in Brighton. Brighton & Hove have said they will keep the situation under review.

Thanks to Brighton & Hove Buses however, although the Council subsidy for the 2A Sunday service would have limited the operation of the service to between 10am and 5pm, the Bus Company has decided to continue to run the service to Steyning on Sunday evenings on a commercial basis.

The 106 bus service to Worthing has also been saved, thanks to Compass Travel deciding to operate it on a commercial basis. But this remains only a once per day morning shopping service, with the bus leaving the Steyning area just after 10am, and leaving Worthing at 1.35pm to return to Steyning. This does not help those wishing to go to/from Shoreham/ Worthing at other times of the day to work or use leisure and entertainment facilities. It will need more people to use this shopping service if it is to survive now the Tory run County Council has cut its subsidy.

But the Steyning area has lost out in the extension of the Brighton & Hove Buses successful 24 hour bus services. The N7 service will be extended every hour during the night from central Hove through Southwick to Shoreham. So, even though there are Brighton night workers who live in Bramber/Upper Beeding/Steyning and young people wishing to attend the late night facilities in Brighton, they will have to continue to use their cars.

Local Lib Dem Ros Deedman has written to the Bus Company complaining that, despite the need to encourage the use of public transport instead of the car in the fight against climate change, the Steyning area has been excluded from this improvement in bus services.