WORSTHORNE residents may be left with no daytime bus service in the village after Transdev Burnley and Pendle announced that it will no longer run the number 2 service from the end of July.

Unless the county council take over the route, residents will be left with no bus service at all during the day, and many villagers who work in Burnley will be forced to make alternative transport arrangements.

The village is currently served by the number 1 bus at evenings and weekends, and the number 2 bus, which runs at half hour intervals throughout the day, but Transdev has decided to reroute the service to bypass the village entirely.

Worsthorne resident and Parish Council chairman Pauline Frost-Hardwick said: “It will technically mean that the village will have no bus service during the daytime.

“County Hall are looking into subsidising it, we have expressed our deep concerns, as our nearest bus stop would be Pike Hill.

“We have concerns for local people who rely on the service - elderly people, people who don’t own a car, and people who use the bus to go to work in the morning.

“It is the older people’s lifeline in the village, they are not able to walk to Pike Hill, it’s a steep hill both ways.”

Tim Gornall, the county council's bus and supported transport manager, said: "We have been informed by Transdev Burnley and Pendle that they are to make changes to the number 2 route, which means buses will no longer run to Worsthorne during the daytime between Mondays and Saturdays.

"We are preparing a report for the cabinet member for highways and transport, which will detail how much it would cost the county council to subsidise this service.

"The evening and Sunday service between Burnley and Worsthorne, which is subsidised by the county council, won't be affected."