A YORK bus route in threat of getting axed has been allocated funds to secure a new short term contract.

A new contract is due to be awarded to a new bus operator to run the number 12 service until the end of March.

The route was first placed under threat after First announced plan to withdraw it from January 22 due to low patronage recovery, increasing costs and a shortage of drivers.

A campaign was launched to save the number 12 bus, which included a public meeting in December attended by more than 40 people and a petition signed by over 1,000 residents.

City of York council has now allocated £59,000 for a new bus operator to run the service under a short term contract in the form of a subsidy, to keep an hourly service running until the end of March.

A tender for a longer-term service will take place in March with the hopes of having a full contract by April 1.

Cllr Simon Daubeney for Westfield said: "I’m delighted that the Council has stepped in to save this vital route.

"This will come as a major relief to many hundreds of residents in Woodthorpe, Acomb Park and Foxwood who were facing the loss of their only public transport service.

"At the meeting it became very clear how important the service is for many residents who use it to get to the shops, to work, to medical appointments, to school and to meet friends and family.

"I’d like to thank the people who signed the petition and gave us their feedback on what they would like the service to look like in future, which we will discuss with the new operator and council officers.”

Cllr Stephen Fenton for Dringhouses and Woodthorpe added: "The reduction in frequency from every half hour to every hour is disappointing, but if it is a more reliable service, then hopefully more people will be attracted to using it.

"It’s really crucial now that as many people as possible use the service to ensure that once April comes around, the operator can see the benefits and financial case for sustaining the service in the long term.

"This intervention by the Council is, however, no substitute for a sustainable long term approach to running bus services which are facing unprecedented challenges.

"Increased costs, driver shortages and slow recovery of usage levels, as well as the cliff edge of Government financial support, has created something of a ‘perfect storm.’

“Unless the sector receives urgent long-term support from the Government, both financially as well as through driver recruitment, more services are likely to face cancellation."