Community & Business
18 July, 2024
Residents ‘cut off’ after bus run ceases
MANY passengers on the Better Together community bus will be left without essential transport after the local organisation decided to cease the Atherton to Mt Garnet run.
The snap decision was made due to a lack of volunteers putting their hands up to do the fortnightly commute.
This now leaves a group of primarily aged residents in the Mt Garnet area without transport into Atherton for grocery shopping, medical appointments and socialisation.
Sylvia Hardy, who is 85 years old, said she and other passengers now felt “cut off” from the world.
“It is disappointing to think the community hasn’t supported the bus,” she said.
“We all really stressed to (Better Together) that we felt abandoned and like the forgotten people because we are aged.”
Ms Hardy said she felt as though she had lost an important part of her fortnightly routine, particularly the social side of it.
“When you socialise, you live longer and when you live out in the neck of the woods, we don’t get to see many people,” she said.
Better Together chief executive officer Laree Verra said it was difficult decision to cease the bus run, but it was what had to be done because of a dwindling volunteer base.
“As you can imagine this has been a very difficult decision and the board and I deeply regret the impact this has on members of our community,” she said.
“Attracting and retaining volunteer bus drivers has become increasingly difficult.
“We are immensely grateful to the dedicated individuals who have generously contributed their time and efforts to operate the bus and serve our community over the many years this service has operated.
“However, the pool of available volunteers has dwindled over time, making it increasingly challenging to maintain regular service schedules.
“We have endeavoured to seek funding that would enable us to have a paid driver, but unfortunately, we have not been successful.
“We will continue to reach out to our service partners in the region to see if we have any way of linking our passengers with other services that may be able to assist.”
