A TOLLESBURY resident has slammed the village’s bus service to Colchester, claiming it’s “never been worse” in the last 20 years.

Rod Price, of The Mount, Tollesbury, regularly commutes to Colchester via the 92 bus service to work as a brand manager in the city.

However, Mr Price claims that several buses have not shown up during weekdays and Saturday mornings, resulting in him having to miss days from work.

He said: “I have been using this bus service for more than 20 years, and I have never seen it in a worse condition.

“One weekend I went up to the depot to get the 7.40am bus into Colchester, and after waiting for an hour, it never turned up.

“I and a couple of other passengers came back to get the 10.10am bus, and that also never showed up, meaning I had to miss a day from work.

“This has happened more than once, and on the return journey from Colchester I’ve had to get a taxi home because of the inconsistent times.”

Mr Price said that there have been some drivers who were unwilling to drive the route because they did not know it.

He added: “There was one incident where I and several others were waiting for a bus in Tollesbury, with two drivers at the station near to where a 92 was parked up. One said he didn’t know the route, and the other couldn’t drive because he needed to have his break.

“No one seems to know what’s going on with this service, and it needs to step up, because so many people desperately need it.”

Bus routes 91, 92 and 95 that go from Tollesbury to Witham, Colchester and Maldon have been in crisis over the past few months when Hedingham Omnibus, who operated the service, announced they would close in June.

Essex County Council stepped in to run the service, but after campaigns by Witham MP Priti Patel over the sparse amount of buses running, a review is currently underway.

A spokesman for County Hall said: “We are sorry to hear of this passenger’s concerns, and will investigate with the operator.”