This is a heads up to all the people in Purbeck who use the No 40 Bus. After holding our breath, thinking maybe the service would be curtailed, we were pleasantly surprised to see in the new timetable that the evening service for the autumn/winter from September 21 will continue with the exception of Sundays.

This is the only public bus service from Poole to Swanage; via Upton, Lytchett Minster, Organford, Sandford, Wareham, Stoborough, Corfe Castle, Kingston & Langton Matravers.

Please be aware that the subsidy by the Dorset County Council for the evening service has been withdrawn.

More Bus, which owns and runs the No 40 Bus, can, as it is now running as a commercial, ie standalone business, decide if it is viable to run the evening service. It very much depends on the numbers of passengers using the No 40, I believe it to be 20 passengers per journey, whether it will continue throughout the winter months until April 2015.

More Bus may change the timetable with only 56 days (eight weeks’) notice, so it is crucial that if you want to keep it in service, please use it or it may be lost forever. This is a very fragile situation, so we need to keep it for those who rely on it for work, visiting relatives and accessing leisure.

Cllr Beryl Ezzard Chairman, Purbeck Transport Action Group