I WAS very interested in the letter from the reader who had tried to get from York to Harrogate to see a concert (August 5).

In October 2001 Mr Alexandra, who owns Harrogate District Travel, decided to withdraw the 79 bus service from York to Harrogate and caused great hardship to the villages between Wetherby and York.

With the valuable help of Press reporter Matthew Woodcock we managed to get Mr Alexandra's company an injection of £18,000 from North Yorkshire to keep the service running throughout the winter months.

He eventually withdrew this service in April 2002.

Villagers were happy when Arriva took over the contract to provide a service from Selby to Wetherby and were doubly happy when the route went down Ridgeway in Acomb into Front Street and stopped outside the doctors' surgery. This was a tremendous help to elderly people from the rural districts. Then, for some reason, the route was changed to take in Knapton. When I approached City of York Council I was told North Yorkshire had decided to subsidise the villages of Hunsingore, Cattal and Knapton.

My husband and myself, along with a number of passengers from Long Marston and Tockwith, used the service to Wetherby at least two or three times every week and never saw any passengers from these villages.

When my 84-year-old husband needed to visit the doctor he could not manage to climb up the hill from Greenside Garage to Front Street via Acomb Green. So, at the cost of £5.50, I had to get him a taxi.

If the convenient route of the buses had been left alone it would have cost us, and two other patients similarly affected, 25p.

When will the officials stop passing the buck and give passengers the service they need?

Mrs C P Hogarth,

Bradley Crescent,

Rufforth,

York.

Updated: 11:22 Wednesday, August 18, 2004