THE CAMPAIGN to save the 712 Greenline service has reached the end of the line with Arriva announcing the service will still be cancelled in January despite the efforts of campaigners.

In an announcement made yesterday, Arriva explained that financial pressures meant they could not afford to risk further losses on the service and that even calculations based on increased fares and extra usage would fail to have a significant impact on the losses the service had already made.

Matthew Jackson-Hale, who vociferously campaigned to save the blighted service and led the ‘Save the 712’ campaign, said he was reeling from the news. “I’m very, very disappointed. My hopes were starting to rise but now we know where we stand we have got to consider what we need to go forward.

“We know that many other bus companies have been watching the campaign with interest and we have a lot of information - we’ve done an awful lot of research - about what people want and how a service could meet these needs.

“We’re also keen to look at alternative options using the 758, and we will keep people informed about our progress.”

Arriva said that the outcome was “regrettable” and there had been a lot of deliberation before they made the final decision but even with a fare increase in line with the 758, the 712’s revenue would still have to increase by over �1,500 per week to make the service break even.

Linsey Frostick, the regional marketing manager for Arriva, said they fully appreciated all the hard work and support that had been put into the service and that it was deeply disappointing they had not been able to make a more positive decision.