A TWICE-CANCELLED bus service which links areas of Selby with York will be reinstated within weeks.

The 42 service between Selby and York was first shut down in 2007 due to funding cuts, but restarted following a campaign led by Selby District Councillor John Cattanach to bring back the service for local parishes in the Selby area on Sundays and Bank Holidays.

The Saturday night, Sunday and Bank Holiday services were cut again in 2015, but an announcement on the Friends of the 42 Facebook page this month said the reinstatement of the Sunday service would begin next month.

Cllr Cattanach said he was "delighted to report that I had an excellent meeting with Arriva" to work out the Selby to York and return 42S service.

He said: "I have masses of data relating to passenger numbers from the years when the Parish Councils last subsidised the Sunday service.

"I wanted to make sure that we maximised the potential for the route this time and I think we have come up with the best timetable possible."

Buses will leave Selby at 9.25am, 11.25am, 2.25pm and 4.25pm, and leave York at 10.25am, 12.25pm, 3.25pm and 5.25pm, with stops at Naburn, Stillingfleet, Kelfield, Cawood and Wistow.

The service is expected to start on Sunday, May 20, following the reinstatement of the Saturday night service, and Cllr Cattanach said

He said: "This service will not be a regular two hour service. What it does do is allow early travellers to go towards Selby or York and come back two hours later.

"For those who want to enjoy a Sunday lunch or drink along the route it will allow you a three hour envelope and for those wanting to spend a significant time in York or Selby, you can have seven hours in York and five hours in Selby."

The latest service is a Parish Transport Initiative, run with Arrive and underwritten by parish councils and Selby District Council and expected to run until Sunday, December 23, while the Saturday night service will end on Saturday, December 29.

Cllr Cattanach said the future of the services would depend on the amount of use they got, so encouraged people to take advantage of them.

He said: "A Sunday service has never run "commercially" (without subsidy) but it would be brilliant if we could show how good this route is.

"I will then look towards getting quotes for these services next year for year round services as the 42 route is up for re-tender early in 2019."