Neath Port Talbot Council yesterday responded to criticism it has received following the large package of service changes introduced by First on 6th December.
Head of Engineering and Transport, John Flower, explained, “Apart from the new service between Ammanford and Ystradgynlais, operated by Veolia, all the other changes in the Neath Port Talbot area are on commercial services-in other words routes that are run by First without any subsidy from the council.
“It is not appropriate to hold the council responsible, who are already providing over £675,000 in subsidies this year into the network-and that amount does not take account of any concessionary fare reimbursement. Aggrieved passengers should contact First, not us”
Council officers have been able to facilitate commercial replacements where possible-but no spare funding exists to prop up any other services, without giving notice on other existing contracts, a process which takes in excess of three months.
