WORRIED bus passengers in the Selby area could launch a campaign against plans to cut crucial services.

The warning came as county councillors representing the district were accused of "stabbing voters in the back" by backing a cost-cutting review of 89 bus services. About 15 bus routes through the district that link villages with Selby, York and Tadcaster are under threat.

Labour and Liberal Democrat county councillors had mounted an 11th-hour bid to prevent any cuts, through an amendment tabled at North Yorkshire County Council's annual budget meeting.

But the amendment was defeated by votes from the council's Conservative majority, including every Tory councillor in the Selby district.

Local Labour councillor Brian Marshall said: "People are feeling really upset. These councillors are always complaining about not getting a very good bus service in their villages and then they go and do this.

"I just hope that come the next election these old people will remember.

"These councillors have stabbed them in the back."

County council transport bosses say they cannot afford to pay £4 million a year to subsidise the existing network.

The amendment proposed changing the council's budget to avoid having to save £200,000 from bus provision.

If it had been passed, the review would have continued, but there would have been no need to cut any services.

Selby MP John Grogan weighed into the row this week by writing to John Marsden, the county council's chief executive, opposing to the moves.

He told the council boss he had been "deluged by constituents objecting to the possible cuts".

Selby Labour councillor Steve Shaw-Wright said the cuts could see protests on the same scale as those mounted against the district council's proposals to sell off its housing stock.

He pledged he would back commuters, shoppers and residents opposing the plans.

He said: "I think opposition will grow when people realise what it actually means.

"I would not put it past people to get together and campaign for the buses in a similar way to the campaign against the housing sell-off.

"I would imagine that there will be letters to councillors and people coming to protest. We would assist people in organising meetings or attending them to discuss their issues and problems."

But Conservative councillor Liz Casling, who opposed the amendment and backed the review, said: "Unfortunately hard decisions have to be made.

"It is too easy to jump on the bandwagon and say we are going to cut all the services. That will not happen.

"A lot of people have had feedback saying they agree with cutting buses because they are fed up of seeing empty buses."

Updated: 09:30 Friday, February 17, 2006