One of only two bus routes going through Little Wymondley will no longer call in the village from June.

Arriva will be making major changes to their 100 and 101 routes between Stevenage and Luton on June 2.

The 101 route, which currently calls in Little Wymondley, will only serve Little Wymondley by-pass from that date onwards. Arriva are recommending that passengers instead use Centrebus's 80 route between Stevenage and Hitchin.

Currently, the 80 runs once per hour on weekdays and Saturdays, with no service at all on Sundays.

In contrast, the 101 runs roughly once every 40 minutes on weekdays and Saturdays, with an hourly service on Sundays. It also continues later into the evening than the 80.

Cllr Dominic Griffiths, who represents Chesfield ward on North Herts Council and also sits on Wymondley Parish Council, has called on Arriva to reverse the cancellation.

If that cannot be done, he is asking the bus operator to continue their service on a reduced timetable, or to share their patronage data with Centrebus with a view to the 80 service being increased.

Cllr Griffiths told the Comet that he has "had residents from all over the village tell me their personal stories about how the bus cancellation is going to affect them".

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They include multiple people who say they will have to find new jobs, shift workers at Lister Hospital who will have to find alternative arrangements, and elderly people whose "freedom" to go shopping and see friends will be reduced.

The Comet: Cllr Griffiths said he is really disappointed by Arriva's decision.Cllr Griffiths said he is really disappointed by Arriva's decision. (Image: North Herts Council)

Cllr Griffiths made clear that he is "really disappointed" by Arriva's decision, adding that "it feels like the village has been cut off".

He concluded: "There's lots of planned expansion in the village, with the potential for 300 houses to be added, so it would make more sense to wait and see what the impact of that is than cancelling the service."

Responding to this story, a spokesperson for Arriva South said: “We’re implementing some network changes from June 2 and unfortunately that will mean that the 101 service will not be serving Little Wymondley.

“Sadly patronage on that part of the service is very low indeed and serving the village adds to the overall length of the journey, which has a knock-on effect on the reliability of the route overall.

“Though we recognise that some people rely on the service, there are sadly not enough passengers to cover the cost of serving the village.

“In terms of alternative options, the Centrebus 80 serves the village hourly, so the residents are still receiving a service.”