Bus depots set to close in Cheshire
Arriva North West says it's consulting with affected employees
Arriva North West has announced that it is consulting with affected employees on a proposal to close its Winsford and Macclesfield depots.
If it goes ahead it would affect any bus services in the Winsford, Northwich, Crewe and Macclesfield areas.
The operators says that, "Both depots have been loss-making since before the pandemic and the number of journeys taken by passengers in the areas served by the depots has not recovered to the same levels as comparable operations following the pandemic.
"Arriva North West has worked closely with Cheshire East and Cheshire West councils to explore all options to avoid closures but regretfully has not been able to find a way forward to return the depots to a financially sustainable position."
A spokesperson for Arriva North West Bus goes on to say:
“It is with great regret we announce we are consulting our highly valued team on the closure of our Winsford and Macclesfield depots which, if confirmed, would mean we would no longer operate any bus services in the Winsford, Northwich, Crewe and Macclesfield areas.
“Withdrawing services and closing depots are always a very last resort. This very difficult decision has been taken following exhaustive steps to turn around the loss-making services but with consistently too few customers to cover the increased cost of running services it is sadly necessary to launch a consultation with affected employees on closing the depots."