Fuming parents, children and residents have slammed proposals to cut a school bus route.

The S4 route which serves four secondary schools in Sevenoaks, is under threat of closure under plans by Kent County Council (KCC).

Residents fear cuts to bus services will leave villagers near Sevenoaks stranded

There are growing fears the move would lead to more road congestion and extra pollution after a public consultation was launched by the council last month which is due to close on April 20.

The Go Coach route from Edenbridge to Ide Hill, transports pupils to and from several schools in Sevenoaks – Trinity School and Knole Academy.

A cut in the service means students will have to find alternative routes to school, an added challenge for people living in rural areas.

It comes as KCC has been forced to cut back on subsidised services to meet the demands of this year's budget with services affected in Ashford, Canterbury, Dover, Dartford, Folkestone, Maidstone, Swale, Thanet, Tonbridge and Malling and Tunbridge Wells.

KCC currently spends about £6m per year to contract services which are not profitable for bus companies but which the council thinks are important.

Despite this, parents and pupils alike are disappointed at the proposals.

One parent, Anisa Ferguson, a 55-year-old writer, explained how "devastating" the cuts would be and the mother-of-two says she has been left with an ultimatum.

Anisa has the option of driving her children to and from school, a total of 24 miles a day.

Alternatively, she could make her children do a 15-mile round trip which includes two buses and a train, or even make them change school completely. She went on to describe the impact the cuts will have.

Anisa said: "One of the decisions when you choose a school for your children, especially when you live in a village, is that you choose one on a bus route, so they can get themselves to school independently.

"It will be devastating if this goes through actually, we're going to have to make some very hard decisions.”

She described her dismay on her children possibly missing the social aspect of bus transport, which she explained is part of a child's development.

She said: "It’s quite a social thing to get the bus and it teaches them about being on time and how to behave, they look forward to getting the bus, it’s an integral part of their day."

It comes as KCC's public transport team has been asked to reduce planned spending on transport.

The £3m cut would see the team's budget halved and ultimately lead to a decision on which routes to subsidise.

This means some 48 contracts would have to be ended affecting 55 supported bus services from summer 2022.

The cuts stem from an increase in demand for services such as social care and the financial pressure the pandemic has had on government finances and subsequently local authority's wallets.

Mum Emma Parker, who organised a protest against the cuts this week, has calculated travel will cost her an extra £200 a month on petrol.

The 52-year-old PR consultant works from home but has Zoom meetings from 8am and says the clash in timetables could severely impact her work.

Trinity School head teacher Dr Matthew Pawson said: "Maintaining current bus services so that our students can attend school is more important than ever.

"Some families rely on buses to get their children to school, and withdrawing services will add pressure on our families when they need as much support as possible.

"Then there is the environmental impact, by removing specific bus routes will result in more cars and increased congestion on our already too busy roads."

Emma added the planned changes come after a merger of the S11 with the S4 route which now serves pupils from Wrotham, Platt, Borough Green, Ightham, Shipbourne, Dunks Green, Plaxtol into Sevenoaks.

Before the pandemic more than 50 million journeys a year were made on Kent buses, with around 3.7 million journeys were made on services paid for by KCC.

During the pandemic, the number of journeys made on buses in Kent was less than 20 million and currently the use of buses is only about 70% of the pre-pandemic levels.

Tom Tugendhat, MP for Tonbridge and Malling said: "I completely understand the frustration of many in hearing this news, buses play a vitally important role in connecting our communities.

"At a time when we are encouraging each other to be more environmentally friendly, this move will either push people back into their cars, or for many, will leave them stranded with no access to shops or facilities such as schools.

"Kent County Council have supported bus routes in our community for years.

"The routes are incredibly important to so many and are relied by school children and many others and I will do all I can to stand up for those who rely heavily on this service."

KCC cabinet member for highways and transport, Cllr David Brazier, said: “During continued challenging times and in light of the rising and significant cost and demand pressures facing KCC in 2022/23 and over the medium term.

"The council must make challenging decisions to ensure it is able to continue delivering its statutory responsibilities.

“At the budget meeting in February members voted to reduce the Supported Bus Budget by £2.2 million, subject to a consultation with residents.

"All services being consulted on have been identified using established criteria which considers when services operate and the cost to the council of each journey made.

"This means some busier services have been identified for potential withdrawal where the costs of the contracts are high.

“We entirely understand how vital some of these bus routes are to some residents and communities and I would encourage anyone who would be affected by these proposed changes to share their views through our public consultation, which opened on 24th February and closes on 20th April.”

Click here to complete an online questionnaire with your views on the cuts.