A permanent subsidy is being sought for a bus which helps many of Yateley’s elderly and disabled residents.

Cllr Andy Whitaker, chairman of the charity which runs the Yelabus and a Yateley town councillor, wants Hampshire County Council to give long-term funding to keep it on Yateley’s roads.

County, town and Hart district council funding has largely kept the 21-year-old service going since a £120,000 National Lottery grant ended in 2006.

Cllr Whitaker said: “Yelabus has been trying since 2004, two years before its lottery grant ran out, to engage constructively with Hampshire County Council in order to find a sustainable role for itself in some coherent community transport scheme making use of local resources.

“The subsequent difficulties encountered could not have been surmounted without the active intervention of the Hampshire Action Team (HAT) on our behalf, for which Yelabus is truly grateful.

“Hampshire County Council has given us another year’s grant for 2009 in order to allow further time for Yelabus to conform to the Hampshire County Council countywide norm, one size fits all.”

In December the district council said it could not fund transport in 2009-10, which also affected the county council’s Call and Go transport scheme. The district council said it had adopted the view that “those who use it should pay for it”.

The county council has given Yelabus £11,500 for 2009-10 but said it should work to-wards financial independence through volunteer drivers.

Last year the county council employed independent consultants to review community transport in Hampshire following its environment and transport select committee scrutiny review report delivered at the beginning of 2008.

Cllr Whitaker said the consultants should work with Yelabus for a thorough insight into how it operates. He added: “The opportunity to put our case to independent scrutiny, and argue for a share of the Hampshire County Council support for community transport in Hart, for the 60 organisations and 600 individuals we serve, has been denied.

“The analysis of community transport delivery by the Hampshire County Council scrutiny committee was post-poned from 2008 to 2009. Despite giving evidence to the scrutiny committee in 2008, Yelabus has now been told that its innovative operation will not be considered as part of that review. Yelabus is still anx-iously looking for ways to get its case heard.

“Innovation will inevitably be initially in conflict with the pressures to conform. But the benefits in terms of very significant cost reduction must surely merit some consideration, especially in these difficult financial times.

“It has been able to survive since 2006 only by annual local authority grants, usually given as a last-minute reprieve.

“Hampshire County Council has said that 2009 will be the last year of support for Yelabus and has not allowed the organisation to tender for a contract to continue its service in the Yateley area.”

But county councillor Sharyn Wheale, who is on the scru-tiny committee, claimed it was looking into community transport across the whole district to meet the needs of all.

She said: “The county council is 100% in favour of supporting community transport.

“It is essential community transport doesn’t cease and the county council is financing Yelabus and Call and Go for the next financial year.

“We should develop a robust community transport scheme that will suit the needs of people across Hart.

“One size does not fit all. We are looking into a service that includes buses and taxi fares to enable everyone to benefit.”

A county council spokesman said: “Since the report’s publication the environment and transport select committee has been monitoring the county council’s response to, and implementation of, the review recommendations.

“In addition to this, Hampshire County Council has also commissioned consultants to undertake a review of community transport services in the county.

“The review will evaluate the current approach, highlight good practice and examine alternative methods of delivery around the country and then make recommendations on possible options for the future delivery of services in Hampshire.

“We understand that Cllr Whitaker has been in contact with the consultants regarding this work and so we know that they are aware of the Yelabus model.”

HAT members have spoken to the county council on Yela-bus’ behalf in the past.
The county council’s £11,500 grant for 2009-10 was initially conditional on it being matched by the district council or parish councils within Hart, but HAT persuaded the county council to remove this condition last month.

HAT chairman Cllr Eric Neal said he would be happy to put forward other recommendations in the future should the majority of HAT members agree to make a formal HAT representation.

In order to do this, a Yelabus representative would need to attend a HAT meeting to pitch an idea.

Cllr Neal said he would be happy to add the matter to its March agenda.

Cllr Whitaker is currently in contact with Cllr Neal to negotiate such a meeting.

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