HAVING followed the campaign which was run by LET regarding the withdrawal of school buses by Blackburn with Darwen Borough Council, I thought that the council had seen the dangers to the children which were inherent in their plans and had reinstated the school buses. However, I have been speaking to one mother who is quite distraught because her son will be attending Our Lady & St John's on North Road and the bus which would have taken him to and from school is one of the three which the council has deemed unnecessary.
She has been given two options. He can walk from school (against the flow of pupils from Queen's Park High School) to Shadsworth Leisure Centre to catch a bus or catch the Outer Circle bus and then have a journey of 50 minutes. A boring trip and we all know that bored children can become troublesome.
The other alternative is to have a taxi pick him up every day.
Neither of these options seems sensible these days when there are so many dangers for children. Too late when we see the tragic headlines.
Why axe just three buses? What a small saving there must be. I know that this mother would happily pay full fare for her child, content in the knowledge that he would be safely transported from school at the end of the day.
I for one will certainly be thinking very carefully where I put my cross at the next local elections. I always vote and I think it's time for real changes on our council. The safety of children must be a priority issue, no matter what their creed or colour.
EILEEN M EASTHAM, Milton Close, Darwen.
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