IT IS with great regret that the trustees and management committee of the Launceston Community Transport Partnership known as The Little Red Bus have to announce that the service will have to be wound up.

This is due to financial difficulties, which make it impossible to continue.

The service was started ten years ago with the intention of providing a dial-a-ride service for people of all ages who live in the surrounding areas and locally who do not have their own transport. It has provided regular trips into town, weekly excursions to places of interest, monthly trips into Truro, pub lunches, private hire etc.

The service is mainly run by volunteers but the partnership employs a part time manager and two drivers for Cornwall Council school contracts.

The partnership has issued a statement that reads: “We have been supported by an annual grant from Launceston Town Council and are very grateful for their continued support. Unfortunately the huge running costs have far outweighed the income and although we have received various grants this has not been sufficient to maintain the service.

“The committee would like to thank all the regular passengers for their support over the years and our biggest regret that we will be letting them down. The committee also wishes to thank all the volunteers who have given up so much of their time to enable the service to continue.

“The trip to the Minack Theatre to see ‘The Pirates of Penzance’ will still go ahead and the transport will be arranged with a private hire company. Passengers will be contacted with the information nearer the time as usual. Trips already arranged for July will still take place in the usual manner.

“Sadly our ‘Little Red Bus’ has come to the end of the road.”

During the full town council meeting on Tuesday, June 19, deputy mayor Cllr Dave Gordon broke the news to his fellow councillors, who expressed their remorse at the decision.

He said: “It emerged from our last meeting on the future of The Little Red Bus that it will cease to run after July. There was no viable solution to maintain the service and it was losing money weekly.”

He said there will unfortunately be redundancies as a result, adding: “It is very sad but unfortunately there was no other option.”

Following the announcement former driver of The Little Red Bus, Les Whaley, said: “I attended the Launceston town council meeting last Tuesday, June 19, and was sad to hear that the Little Red Bus will stop in late July.

“As a past driver I did some Friday trips bringing ladies from the north side in to Tesco and our town for shopping, I also took people at weekends to Truro and Rosemoor RHS Gardens etc which was well attended.

“With a very detailed list of trips planned for July-September which some must have spent some time to arrange I would have thought before stopping the bus there should have been a public meeting in Launceston to see what support could found from the people in the Launceston area and local business.”