Residents fear they are going to be stranded on their housing estate, following the announcement of further cuts in bus services.

Garrie Baillie lives with his wife Sharon in Dickens Road on the Ringlestone estate, just outside Maidstone.

Mr Baillie suffered a severe heart attack in 2014, which although he is only 52, has left him with health problems and a difficulty in walking any distance.

He relies heavily on the buses to get into town.

He said: “With Arriva cutting so many buses, there’s just going to be no way for me and others on the estate to get around.”

Arriva has announced cuts from July 23, which it says will help improve the punctuality and reliability of its remaining services.

Among these scheduled to go are the 55 service, which currently connects the Ringlestone estate to King Street in Maidstone.

Without it, Mr Baillie and other infirm or elderly people on the estate will face a long walk up the A229 Chatham Road, where they will then be faced with the difficulty of crossing the busy road to pick up the 101 service from Gillingham to Maidstone.

The Arriva service cuts come just six months after cuts were made to 38 bus services across the county in February as Kent County Council withdrew £2.2 million from subsidised routes.

A spokesman for Arriva said: “These services are being withdrawn due to the combination of a reduction in the concessionary reimbursement paid to us and lower patronage on the services.”

The services that are going altogether are the 334 service, 8 service, 55 service and 79 service

While there were also be reductions in frequency or shorter journeys on services 5, 71, 85, 82, 89 and 642.

The Maidstone Green party is campaigning against the cuts.

Cllr Stuart Jeffery said: “We must put pressure on KCC to prevent the continued destruction of our public transport.

“Those services being cut include the number 8 through Fant taking people to the hospital and into the town centre, the 334 to Sittingbourne and Sheppey, the 55 to Ringlestone and 79 to Penenden Heath plus reductions in many more services.”

The party has launched an oline petition calling on KCC to take action, which can be signed here.

Cllr Jeffery“KCC can support those services if it choses to. Maidstone Borough Council can work with bus companies if it choses to. Sadly neither council is supporting public transport and each is failing their residents.”

Mr Baillie put it more succinctly, he said: “What’s the point of a bus company, if they don run any buses?”