09/09/10….Changes to 280 bus route through Haddenham – latest

FOLLOWING controversial changes to the route to be taken by the 280 bus through Haddenham, representatives from Arriva and Transport for Buckinghamshire will be attending a meeting on September 15, (7-9pm) in the Haddenham Community Junior School hall, Woodways, to answer questions from villagers about the changes, due to take effect on Sunday, September 12.

In an update form Christina Jeffery, from Haddenham, she explains that Arriva says that they have ?withdrawn the service from the Church End ‘leg’ due to the need to maintain reliability on the 280 service? – they have a legal duty to run 95% of the journeys on a service within a ‘window of reliability’ as set by the Traffic Commissioner.

It would appear that it has become increasingly difficult for them over the years to keep to the timetable due to more and more traffic congestion, new speed limits and traffic calming measures. As the route is a fairly direct one between Oxford and Aylesbury, apart from the duplication of going to Church End and back, there was little scope for finding more time – to achieve their reliability goals and thus satisfy the majority of their passengers – by cutting out any other part of the route.

Compared with, for example, bus-stops in Wheatley, relatively few passengers use the Church End bus-stop (although a number do use the one near Crabtree Rd, outside Haddenham Hall).

In addition to the problems stated above, it seems that Arriva has also responded belatedly to a request made by councillors before the new Medical Centre opened in Stanbridge Road in 2005, for a frequent bus service via the new centre (although this was provided for a short while by the 2-hourly 260 service). Re-routing the bus along Stanbridge Road has also contributed to the need to save time elsewhere.