Newmarket councillor and former deputy mayor set to walk axed bus route in protest at cuts

Campaigning Newmarket councillor Janne Jarvis will be taking his protest over cuts to a town bus service on the road tomorrow.

Together with former town councillor and deputy mayor Chris O’Neill he will be walking the 16 miles of the new T4 bus route, which now excludes Newmarket’s Studlands Park estate, starting from Addenbrooke’s Hospital in Cambridge at 7.50am to the town’s bus station in The Guineas.

The effort is likely to take between eight and nine hours but Cllr Jarvis, who represents the Studlands estate, said he hoped it would serve to highlight local anger at the cuts to a vital service.

“We’re walking the route on Friday so we’re not forced to walk it in the future because we no longer have a bus service,” he said.

“The walk will follow the new T4 bus route which replaced the former number 11 service between Cambridge and Newmarket. This change has completely excluded the Studlands estate, leaving many residents stranded, unable to access essential services or commute to Cambridge for work, healthcare, or education.

“We have witnessed our bus services being cut time and time again. Surely, this must be the final straw for the long-suffering residents of Newmarket,” said Cllr Jarvis. “A modern town with a vibrant economy requires reliable, modern transportation. To thrive, our communities must be connected. We urge the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Combined Authority (CPCA) and Suffolk County Council to reconsider this decision, the human impact of which cannot be understated.”

At the end of last month the CPCA replaced the number 11 bus service from Newmarket to Cambridge with two new routes.

The new Tiger 4 bus service, which is run by Stagecoach, operates between Newmarket and Addenbrooke's Hospital but no longer serves Studlands Park.

A statement on the CPCA website said: "These routes have been designed to better connect our towns, villages and communities."

But Cllr Jarvis said: “If we want a modern town we need a modern transport system we need to be connected. We need our communities to be connected.”

And he urged residents to support the walk by joining them on route or by following progress on social media.