Late and crowded buses make pupils late for class
StagecoachParents say delayed and overcrowded buses are leaving children late for school, or being turned away at the bus stop.
More than 700 people have signed a petition calling for Stagecoach to improve the 97 and 98 services, which run between Gloucester and Cheltenham.
Aruna Vadlamudi, from Longlevens, said her daughter now catches an earlier bus because later services are "too busy" and she often cannot get a seat.
Stagecoach said they were "sorry" to hear about the delays and overcrowding and are planning changes from May.
"Too many people are travelling and they need to plan another bus for the students," Vadlamudi said.
"Last week the bus was cancelled so she was late. For me it's good but for students, it's causing problems.
"'Everybody's facing the same problem when they're going to and back from the school."
Sarah HandsThe petition was set up Councillor Stewart Dove and Councillor Sarah Hands, who said people were "getting frustrated".
"Younger children, they've only just got a bit of independence and they're going on the bus on their own, it can be quite worrying if the bus doesn't turn up or they're turned away.
"Some schools are issuing detentions or warnings for them being late through no fault of their own," Hands said.
'We're planning changes'
Chris Hanson. Managing Director of Stagecoach West said he was "sorry" and that it was "not the experience we want our customers to have".
"We have taken a lot of customer feedback and we are planning some changes on 31 May," he said.
"That will look to correct the issues, give back some reliability, quicker times into Cheltenham and a replacement for the service in Hatherley that is more in view with the resident's needs."
"We've seen an increase in school children travelling this year, which has caused some of the problem. Equally the changes we made last year in Hatherley on the 97/98 are also a cause and we're looking to reverse this."
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