A hospital worker has hit out against county council bus cuts, saying they have pushed residents “off the face of the Earth.”

Carole Beard had taken the 14a service each day to commute to her job at Blackburn Royal Hospital, but the service has now been permanently cut from Accrington as part of Lancashire County Council budget cuts.

Carole, 60, now has to travel for up to two hours on alternative buses to make the four-mile journey between her house in Oswaldtwistle , and her job at Blackburn Hospital.

Carole, who has lived on Paddock Street, for 34 years, said that the 14a service had been packed at peak times, and without it many people have been left stranded.

She told the Observer: “The bus used to go round the industrial estate and all the workers used it - it was standing room only.

“My neighbours next door are well in their 80s and they use the hospital quite a lot and now they have to go by taxi.”

Carole, who works as a radiographer assistant, added: “I am standing up for the hundreds of people who are not on the map anymore.

“At the moment they are cutting the most vulnerable people down - the council have just pushed us off the face of the Earth.

“Surely there is a bus service that can do the hospital and the industrial estate?

“I don’t know how those workers are going to be able to get to work without it. There is no public transport to use anymore.”

Grandmother Carole said she would be willing to pay extra for tickets if the bus route was reinstated. Currently she has to travel into Blackburn, and then change buses - which costs more than the normal fare.

Carole said: “They have spent £6 million on a bus station that’s going to be standing empty.

“There’ll be no buses in it - there’ll be bus stops but no people waiting at them.

“If I could set a bus company up I’d run it to the hospital myself. People need it to be there.”

A spokesman for Lancashire County Council said: “There will be an impact on some people where they will need to change buses as direct routes are no longer available, however we have ensured that most areas of the county still retain a public transport connection.

“Pilkingtonbus will continue to operate the 14/14a between Clitheroe and Accrington, with journeys every 90 minutes Monday to Saturday, and more frequent journeys at peak times. However we are no longer in a position to support the direct link between Accrington and Blackburn Hospital.”

'We've been passed over by bus chiefs'

Hyndburn buses have been ‘passed over’ as council bosses salvage at-risk routes in Lancashire, it’s been claimed.

Following cuts to bus subsidies, Lancashire County Council (LCC) has agreed to re-invest £2 million to maintain commercially non-viable, but important local bus services.

Councillors say the fund will support 28 buses in areas of the county which would otherwise have no public transport - but crucial routes in Hyndburn such as the 14a between Accrington, Oswaldtwistle and Blackburn Hospital have not been saved.

A cross-party Cabinet Working Group proposed that the fund would support routes from April 3, to ensure people’s continuing access to these ‘vital services’.

However, none of the £2 million fund has been set aside to support any of Hyndburn’s eight bus routes, of which four will cease running and two will be partially cut.

County Councillor John Fillis, cabinet member for highways and transport, said: “We have been forced to reduce our current funding for buses from around £7 million to £2 million.

“This has been a very difficult process that the all-party working group has had to get to grips with, to make the best of a bad situation.

“I’m very pleased to accept the working group’s recommendation to fund these bus services which will mean most areas of the county will continue to receive regular public transport.”

Oswaldtwistle councillor Peter Britcliffe

But Oswaldtwistle councillor Peter Britcliffe, who has campaigned against the loss of the 14a service through his ward, said that vital services in Hyndburn had been ‘passed over’.

He said: “It’s bitterly disappointing. Hyndburn has been passed over and as usual inept work from our councillors has meant our services have been forgotten.

“I just think this is such a crucial service. Buses are a vital lifeline for people who don’t drive or people who are attending or visiting hospital.”

He added: “It affects a huge cross section of the population. There isn’t much use having a bus pass if there are no buses to use it on.”