VILLAGERS who were left stranded when bus operator Utopia Coaches that ran services between York, Selby and Tadcaster ceased trading on Wednesday have been thrown a lifeline as some of the services will start up again on Tuesday.

North Yorkshire County Council has confirmed that its contracted bus services previously operated by Utopia Coaches Ltd, will continue from, but there will be some changes to the timetables and providers.

The county council stepped in after the withdrawal of these services came out of the blue on Wednesday this week and drivers were sent a text message on Tuesday after work to tell them there would be no jobs from the following morning or found out through Twitter.

County Councillor Don Mackenzie, North Yorkshire’s executive member for passenger transport, said: “Since being given the news on Wednesday our Passenger Transport Team has pulled out all of the stops to secure these replacement services in an effort to minimise disruption to passengers.”

The authority said it has worked with other contractors and its own fleet to replace the services where possible.

Copies of the new timetables are available on its website at https://www.northyorks.gov.uk/bus-service-changes-and-news

The bus routes concerned include the number 8 service between Selby and Drax, 37 Tadcaster to York, 420 Selby to York and the 422 Pontefract to York, as well as four further services in west Yorkshire.

Driver Carl Longfield, of Strensall, who worked for Utopia Coaches for a year told of his shock when he received a text half an hour after leaving work on Tuesday, saying the company had ceased trading.

“I thought it was a joke,” he said. “We had just said ‘see you tomorrow’ so it was a shock. It seemed very spineless and cowardly not to tell us properly.

“Then we heard the owners had gone on holiday.

“It was horrendous to think that so many passengers had been left stranded and all the drivers were concerned about them, as we built up a rapport and they relied on us.

“Many were elderly people living in villages with no shop. They need to get to town and doctor appointments.

“On Thursday we had a meeting with the liquidators and we were told we had to claim our two week’s notice period and any holiday pay from the government.”

Luckily Mr Longfield and at least one former colleague have already found jobs on one of their old routes.

And First York offered to fast-track applications from drivers, to “ensure they are not out of work for a long period of time”.

Selby District councillor John Cattanach said: “Many people didn’t know it had happened, there were people waiting at bus stops the next morning for buses that weren’t going to come. I only found out the next morning on social media.

“Utopia ran a number of routes themselves, so although the county council is working hard to replace the routes they tendered, Utopia’s own services are unlikely to be replaced.

“There are people in my village who have already missed hospital appointments. When something like this happens with no notice people can’t always get cover at the last minute.

“In Cawood people have been kind enough offering lifts to those who can’t get around. Hopefully the county council will find someone to at least provide a shuttle service from the villages into bigger towns where more regular services run.”

Cawood resident David Jones said on Wednesday: “There’s a lot of people in the village who relied on these buses to get to the shops, or to and from work. It will affect a lot of people in villages right along the routes. I hope something is sorted out as quickly as possible.”

New operators have stepped in including Coastliner, York Pullman, Stringers’ Coaches, Harrogate Coach Travel and the NYCC IPT Fleet. It is unclear what will happen to Utopia Coaches’ commercial routes.