THE Blackburn outer circle bus route has changed, the timetable has changed and the fare system has changed.

All this happened without apparent notice. I saw nothing in the papers or on the buses.

Leaving people waiting for a bus that is hourly when the timetable has been altered by 30 minutes without any notification is why public transport is failing the public.

Prior to things being changed, two single-decker buses were used that were far too big for the route so now they have started using double-deckers. The smaller buses on the outer circle were big enough, they were never filled. So why change to bigger buses?

Blackburn Transport has been complaining for ages that this route is not used enough but with the way it has run it the results were inevitable.

I use this bus almost every week but was shocked to find the fare had increased by almost 50 per cent from £1.10 to £1.60. This is what will inevitably put people off public transport. Maybe what they want to achieve is fewer passengers on larger buses then they have an excuse to stop it altogether.

Whatever happened to common sense?

IAN DAVIES, via email.