Third day of bus travel disruptions as Mansfield and Ashfield routes cancelled

Stagecoach East Midlands are currently in talks with unions on pay, and said earlier this month that they hoped for ‘minimal impact’ on services – but commuters are seeing a third day of disruptions.

Transport union RMT members at Mansfield’s Stagecoach depot, on Sutton Road, are taking action, which includes ‘not to undertake overtime and not to undertake rest day working’ during two periods – between 12.01am on Friday, September 17, and 11:59pm on Friday, October 1, and again between 12.01am on Friday, October 8, and 11.59pm on Friday, October 22.

The bus company’s Twitter account has posted a number of tweets listing the routes which are cancelled today.

Their tweets stated: “The following service journeys will not operate – we apologise for any inconvenience.

"Pronto, Mansfield to Chesterfield: 0515, 1100, 1800

“Pronto, Mansfield to Nottingham: 0655, 0715, 0755, 0810, 0850, 0910, 0950, 1000, 1130, 1140, 1230, 1400, 1410, 1430, 1540, 1620, 1700, 1730

“Service 23a, Mansfield to Langwith: 1210, 1610.

“Service 23, Mansfield to Langwith: 1240, 1540.

“Service 16, Mansfield to Clipstone: 1125, 1325.

“Service 7, Mansfield to Oak Tree: 1040, 1240, 1440.

"Service 11, Mansfield to Meden Vale: 1100, 1130, 1430, 1500, 1800

“Service 12, Mansfield to Shirebrook: 1245, 1720.

"Service 1, Mansfield to Designer Outlet: 0755, 0835, 0955, 1035, 1235, 1435, 1515, 1715, 1845, 1915.

"Service 1, Mansfield to Huthwaite: 0450, 0525, 0615, 0655, 0845, 0945, 1025, 1225, 1445, 1625,

“Mansfield to Alfreton: 0605, 0905, 1205.

"Service 1, Mansfield to Woodhouse: 0520, 0545, 0625, 0715, 0755, 0805, 0825, 0905, 0915, 0945, 0955, 10145, 1145, 1155, 1325, 1355, 1355, 1405, 1545, 1555, 1635, 1725, 1815, 1835, 2010.

“A Stagecoach East Midlands spokesperson said: "We are continuing to run the majority of our services.

"However, local people who depend on buses to get to work and access public services, as well as local businesses, will be dismayed that the RMT is taking action which will disrupt their services in the weeks ahead.“It is particularly counter-productive when bus networks are requiring taxpayer support as a result of the pandemic and the focus of everyone should be on protecting the long-term sustainability of services for the local community."We are committed to offering good packages for our people that reflect the local economic conditions, the varying costs of running services and the level of passenger journeys, which are currently at only 70% of pre-Covid levels."We very much remain open to continuing discussions with the union and would urge them to return to constructive talks.”

Mick Lynch, RMT general secretary, said: “It's well established now that we are facing a national shortage of bus drivers as staff leave over poor pay and conditions.

“It is ridiculous Stagecoach have chosen this moment to kick their staff in the teeth over pay.

“RMT is fighting for professional wages for professional drivers and our East Midlands Stagecoach members are leading that charge.”

A message from the editor:

Support your Chad by becoming a digital subscriber.

You will see 70 per cent fewer ads on stories, meaning faster load times and an overall enhanced user experience.

Click here to subscribe.