An essential bus service connecting Britain’s smallest city with the rest of Pembrokeshire will be cut down next month, with Pembrokeshire County Council stepping in to fill in some of the gaps.

Due to a revised tendering process Richards Brothers will run the service on the T11 route, between Fishguard and Haverfordwest, via St Davids, commercially.

It will only provide a three hourly service between Haverfordwest and St Davids.

Because the new commercial T11 timetable will create ‘a significant gap in service for residents’, Pembrokeshire County Council has said that it plans procure a revised T11 service.

This council subsidised service will ‘maintain the provision between Fishguard and St Davids, provide through journeys between Fishguard and Haverfordwest via St Davids and fill gaps in the commercial timetable’.

However, it looks likely that there will be fewer journeys running between Fishguard, St Davids and Haverfordwest despite the instatement of a second service.

A report to cabinet on the subject last month said that this procurement may result in two operators providing the T11 service. This could result a negative impact on travellers if tickets are not interchangeable between the commercial and subsidised operators.

The report goes on to say that there will be some changes to the current timetable, including the loss of some through journeys between Fishguard and Haverfordwest via St Davids. However, services at peak times providing journeys to work and school will be maintained.

The council aims to get the subsidised contract in place to start on April 2 so there will be no gaps in service.

On the T11 service it states: Since completing the tender process, we received notification that an operator will run the 410 service and part of the T11 route on a commercial basis from April 2024. As their new T11 timetable will create a significant gap in service for residents along that route, we now plan to procure a revised T11 service in order to maintain a service between Fishguard and St Davids, provide through journeys between Fishguard and Haverfordwest via St Davids and to fill gaps in the commercial timetable.

The Council is undertaking the tender exercise now and we aim to get the contract in place to start on 2nd April so there will be no gaps in service.

From 2 April, the 410 service and part of the T11 route will be operated commercially, with reduced Council oversight of these services.

This is a particular risk for the T11 service, as we have yet to complete the procurement process for the revised service.

That Cabinet delegate authority to the Cabinet Member for Residents Services to authorise an award of a contract for the T11 service following completion of the tender process for a revised timetable, and to authorise the award of contracts for additional services or service enhancements in accordance with the prioritisation model should funds be available within the overall transport budget detailed in this report.

A 3 hourly service between Haverfordwest and St Davids only will be provided commercially by Richards Bros from 2 April 2024. We will procure a revised T11 service to start from 2 April 2024 in order to maintain a service between Fishguard and St Davids, provide through journeys between Fishguard and Haverfordwest via St Davids and fill gaps in the commercial timetable. There will be some changes to the current timetable, including the loss of some through journeys between Fishguard and Haverfordwest via St Davids. The procurement may result in two operators providing the T11 service T11: Subject to outcome of revised tender process - Removal of some through journeys between Fishguard and Haverfordwest via St Davids. Possibility of two operators sharing the provision of this route, one on a commercial basis.

T11 service – removal of some through journeys between Fishguard and Haverfordwest via St Davids – Minor NEGATIVE impact to groups I-T. Services at peak times providing journeys to work and school will be maintained. Possibility of this route being provided by two operator – possible NEGATIVE impact if tickets are not interchangeable between the commercial and subsidised operators’ services.

We will work closely with the commercial operator of the T11 service and the operator who is awarded the contract for the subsidised service to promote a seamless service along this route.