AFTER reading the Warrington GUARDIAN report regarding the cut of the number 48 bus route (January 11), I, as do many people, have to rely on this bus route to take us to and from work, school, hospital, shopping to Stockton Heath or Warrington Town, etc.

It is not only a lifeline to residents of the Appleton area, but from all over town. There are other ways of tackling this problem of finance, without stripping a community of its only form of transport.

It would seem Warrington Borough Transport has a short memory. Not so many years ago they asked the public to back them up, when another bus company tried to steal their patch, and I along with the rest of Warrington did. We could have chosen to have cheaper fares and made WBT "unviable". But no, we supported them and their decision to eliminate a service without any flexibility whatsoever is nothing but disgraceful. They could have reduced the service to a couple of hours morning, lunch and teatime. Anything is better than nothing at all. Mr Featham talks about the "increases of fuel" well, there are many bus routes, just one run taken a day from some of the other services could have helped the situation. The council tax is set to rise by a further six per cent according to the GUARDIAN. Mr John Gartside (council leader) informs us that we are getting "an excellent standard of service". You will find, Mr Gartside, that the No 48 bus passengers do not agree with you, as they will soon have no service at all!

John Prescott tells us to use public transport, perhaps he and the rest of the afore mentioned would like to tell us all how, when we haven't got one!

This situation needs a rethink and a bus service, thank you very much.

MRS G ELLISON

(regular bus user, on many routes)

Latchford