Residents fear they will be left “cut off and housebound” after changes to a major bus route through the heart of Swanscombe.

Arriva’s decision to re-route the hourly 455 service between Dartford and Gravesend from Sunday has left many facing a walk of up to a mile to their nearest bus stop if they want to travel directly to either of the towns.

The new route, which omits six densely populated roads, will also restrict access to Swanscombe High Street, a health centre and even the Asda store at Greenhithe.

Among the soon-to-be redundant bus stops is one in Gunn Road where council chiefs have just spent a reported £4,000 converting the pavement to provide better disabled access onto the Arriva vehicles.

People living in Swanscombe and its residents’ association are now organising petitions and urging people to complain in a bid to make the bus company reverse its decision.

Pensioner Sandra Stevens, who lives in Gunn Road, said: “My friend saw the notice about the changes on the bus stop before I did and told me what was happening. I nearly died.

“I am disabled and there is a bus stop opposite my flat. I have lived here for 20 years and there has always been a bus service.

“Now Arriva are cutting the only bus route many of us have. Many of the residents around here are in their 70s and 80s and will be cut off and house-bound.

“I don’t know how Arriva can leave people in such a big area without a bus. I cannot understand it.”

The existing 455 route runs from the A226 London Road, down Craylands Lane, into Milton Street, Manor Road, Bodle Avenue, Gunn Road, Swanscombe Street and then Church Road before reaching the High Street and back onto London Road.

The new route will take the service down Craylands Lane, into Milton Road and then the High Street. The bus stop opposite Mrs Stevens’ flat has recently been widened to improve disabled access onto buses.

“It’s an enormous walkway and somebody has paid over £4,000 to help us get on buses. Now the bus stop will not be used,” she said.

To travel to Asda Greenhithe or Dartford town centre, Mrs Stevens will have to walk from her home to Craylands Lane, or to Manor Road, take the 483 to Bluewater and then change to the Temple Hill service. She said neither option would be possible.

When Mrs Stevens contacted Arriva, she said she was told one of the reasons for re-routing the service was the problems drivers face trying to manoeuvre past parked vehicles.

She is now helping to collect signatures on petitions opposing the decision. She said shops in the High Street also have copies for people to sign.

Dee Matthews is another resident affected. She told the Messenger: “Many pensioners were moved into Gunn Road because of the bus route and now they will not be able to go shopping. This is causing a lot of upset.”

Many residents have been complaining to Swanscombe and Greenhithe Residents’ Association secretary, Bryan Read, who is also a ward councillor.

He said he was “dead against” Arriva’s decision and fears trade in the High Street could also be affected.

“It affects everyone around here quite badly,” said the 77-year-old. “The area is one of the biggest expanding areas and I would expect things to improve, not go in the opposite direction.”

Swanscombe and Greenhithe Town Council said it met Arriva and Kent Highways to highlight its concerns about the changes and lack of consultation.

A spokesman said members of the planning, major developments, transportation and the environment committee felt the proposals would have a detrimental effect on the residents’ ability to get around and make it difficult for the vulnerable members of the community to use the bus services.

He added that the committee agreed the matter should be raised with Dartford council’s joint transportation board.

Kent County Council, who carried out the improvement work to the bus stop in Gunn Road, said it was “disappointing” Arriva did not inform it of its decision to re-route the service before work began. A spokesman added: “When changes are proposed to bus stops we contact bus operators before works are ordered.

“In this instance, we responded to a request from a local resident for better access to the bus service. The change to the Arriva 455 bus service was registered after the design and consultation work had been undertaken and the order for the work had been placed.
“It is disappointing that Arriva did not inform our infrastructure team of the planned service withdrawal before any work was carried out.”

A spokesperson for Arriva said: “The change to the 455 was made following a large number of customer requests, and requests from elected representatives to us about providing a service for Milton Road which is currently not served by buses.

“Serving Swanscombe with buses is particularly challenging because of the road layout and parking issues and we are working closely with the relevant local authorities to address these issues so that we can best serve the area.

“We recently invested significantly in our Swanscombe network, increasing the frequency of key connections to Bluewater, Gravesend and Ebbsfleet, which are the key connections demanded by the vast majority of our passengers in the area. There are now 30% more buses serving Swanscombe than there were prior to the changes we made in August.

“We are keen for our network to best meet the needs of as many residents as possible in Swanscombe, and will work with the local council to find a solution that achieves this.