PROTESTS from local commuters have followed the announcement by Stagecoach South Wales that the Service 45 Abergavenny - Llwynu Estate is to be axed.

Commenting on proposal a local bus user stated, ‘This is awful if it’s true. There are many older people who rely on this service in and around the Mardy’ while another added, ‘How are the elderly and people who are not fit supposed to walk up the hills from the town? Hillcrest Rd and Old Barnway are quite a walk’.

And now a campaign petition has been launched on the 38 Degrees website calling for the decision to be reversed or for someone else to take over the service stating, ‘We request that the parties concerned change their minds and continue to provide the 45 bus route in Abergavenny.The route is vital to the communities it serves, especially the pensioners, the disabled and young people without access to a car’.

A spokesperson for Stagecoach in South Wales said: "We have managed to keep the Service 45 Abergavenny - Llwynu Estate local service running despite declining revenue from various sources, and increasing operating costs.

‘This service is funded by bus passengers who use the service, it is therefore a commercially operated bus service. Unfortunately we can continue no longer with this situation as we see little hope for improvement in the commercial sustainability of the service with further cuts to funding on the horizon.

‘We have reluctantly taken the decision to cease the service on an entirely commercial basis from 22 October 2017. We have already informed Monmouthshire County Council of our decision.

‘We should like to thank our many customers for their patronage over the years and very much regret that we are no longer is a position to continue this service on a fully commercially sustainable basis beyond 22 Oct 2017.

‘We will work with Monmouthshire County Council to assist them in their considerations of providing an alternative service provision’.