A letter to the Headmaster....

I have written to Mr Nunes, the Headmaster of Backwell School, asking him to set out the reasons for the changes as well as any ideas he may have as to how we can work together to resolve the situation. Ideally we would like the second bus reinstated but I accept that this may not be possible, particularly at such short notice. However, even if we are looking at using the public bus or lift shares we would want to understand if there are any ways the school can help to make sure our children arrive at school safely, on time, and ready to learn.



Possible amendments to public bus times

I have also done some work looking at the most recent public bus times (a new timetable came into force on 29 August). The X2 is timed perfectly in the morning, picking up just after 8:15 each morning and arriving at Backwell crossroads just after 8:30.

The main issue seems to be in the afternoon. The X2 picks up from Backwell crossroads at 15:58. With school finishing between 3:05 and 3:15 pupils may have to wait up to an hour.

At the end of last week I was in correspondence with North Somerset Council to see whether we could request the bus operator to change the timetable to better align with the end of school. There is some precedence for this, but given the short notice any change would not be implemented until October at the earliest.

There are two possible options.

The first, and least likely, is to move the time X2 picks up in Backwell. The current timetable has one picking up at 14:56 and the next at 15:58. A pick up at 15:25 would be perfect.

The second option is to get the X1, which at the moment goes from Backwell down the bypass straight into Bristol, to divert through Long Ashton. This would be for a particular service and for only limited stops in the village. The problem with Long Ashton is that it is......well......long, so we would need a minimum of two stops. I am suggesting these be at Lovelinch Gardens and by the old Northleaze School.

At the moment the X1 picks up at 15:18 and 15:38. Ideally both of these buses would divert through Long Ashton. If this is not possible then ideally we would move to having just one service at about 15:25. I'm worried that unless we're careful our children will get on the wrong bus and find themselves heading down the bypass into Bristol!.

This is the option I am currently working. If you have any views on this please do let me know.

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