RE: Potential loss of free yellow bus service.
I write to you to make you all aware of the potential loss of our community bus in Chigwell Row, if more of us do not take action.
The service started in September 2018 after councillors agreed to push through plans for the two bus service while still awaiting £800,000 from a section 106 agreement (legal agreements between local authorities and developers to pay towards community infrastructure) with Chigwell Primary Academy (CPA).
The bus service was meant to be funded by several S106 agreements but after CPA's planning application was refused, to meet deadlines for the S106 obligation parish councillors agreed to subsidise the service through their General Reserve.
To cut a long story short a new planning application was submitted by CPA who again agreed to the £800,000 commitment. But Epping Forest District Council (EFDC) has sat on the Parish recommended application which normally would be approved within a matter of weeks without any clear reason simply stating 'We are in negotiations'.
It is believed this delay is based on a desire to force the Parish Councillors to end the free bus service. Parish councillors have been forced into a decision to conclude their agreement with community transport charity, Epping Forest Community Transport (EFCT) to stop the hemorrhaging of their General Reserve at just over £6000 a month.
EFCT have continued using the buses during the COVID-19 lockdown as a dial-a-ride service and have also restarted the service since 5th September to help the community. They will not be paid for this period. However, from October 5th the service will operate as a Demand Responsive Transport service and will charge user £4.20 one way and £6 return for adults and a more favourable £1.50 one way and £2 return cost for children. Former Councillors were very in favour of making sure the service became free after a transitional free period while waiting for the £800,000 from S106.
Here is the tricky bit some of the current councillors do not want to continue the yellow bus service and have even stated the bus is not being used, despite very substantial evidence to the contrary. Some of the councillors sit on both the Parish and District Council and are deliberately allowing allegiance to their paid role over local priorities.
Worse still Epping Forest District Council can refuse transfer of the S106 agreement based on the fact that the original application has been changed and may use it for affordable housing priorities, such as social housing on the Grange Farm site which is a listed priority on their Local Plan. By delaying the ratification of CPAs Parish recommended planning application they are placing us in a position where usage of a former free service may drop making the service no longer financially viable. Or if it can be proven that a pay-for service can survive without the funding they may refuse on these grounds. So we are damned if we do or damned of we don't. This is the most flagrant case of politicking I have ever seen.
Chigwell people need to stand up to this, here is why:
1. If we lose the £800,000 agreement that money becomes Epping Forest District Council's and not ours. We lose a free bus service they can use the funds for their purposes which will more than likely include social housing in our community.
2. The bus provides the only public transport that links Chigwell Row to the rest of Essex. Every other service leads to London.
3. I have evidence from private communications that the bus is used by young children, the elderly and the disabled (our most vulnerable of communities) loss of the service hits the most needy who we need to protect. A quick read through our petition will clarify this.
4. The EFDC identified development of Grange Farm and potentially further development of Limes Farm, cannot be sanctioned if we do not have any community infrastructure. Therefore this bus service must be retained and other progress with sustainable transport actioned to make this viable.
Please email ian.ansell@eppingforestdc.gov.uk and ask him to expedite the Chigwell Primary Academy Planning application EPF/1681/19
Please email your councillors and ask them to support the free yellow bus and to be unswerving in their commitment to obtain the original £800,000 agreement.
Please also sign our petition (click here)
Kind regards
Wilson Chowdhry
Chairman Chigwell Row Residents Association
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