THERE could be hope for elderly people who fear they will be cut off when their dedicated bus service is axed.
The Farley Access Bus, which takes residents from sheltered accommodation complexes in Farley Hill into the town centre three times a week, will cease on June 22 because it is no longer commercially viable.
Residents at Felmersham Court say axeing of the service will mean they lose their independence.
But help could be at hand in the form of South Beds Dial-a-Ride, a Totternhoe-based charity that provides pre-booked transport for elderly and disabled people, and a number of scheduled services elsewhere in the county in partnership with Central Bedfordshire Council.
Co-ordinator Dave Barratt has met residents at Felmersham Court and Bethune Court, and is due to visit Bert Collins Court today (Weds).
He said: “I think it’s given them some hope when really they felt like they didn’t have any hope. They just felt abandoned.
“The service was run by Grant Palmer and unfortunately it’s no longer commercially viable for them. But we’re a bit further down the food chain and can operate on a lower overhead base.
“Hopefully we might be able to fill the gap between what they are losing and what they would like to replace it with. They would prefer a timetabled bus service running at a regular time, on a regular day, which we could probably provide.
“But we would need support from the council, which we are trying to rally. To their credit they want to be involved.”
Felmersham Court resident Margaret Chick said she had now received an acknowledgement of the petition she had sent to Luton Borough Council, which says it is looking at ways of replacing the service.
But she said she was concerned that Dial-a-Ride might not be an option because it was based outside of Luton.