Sutton Bonington residents say they have been left without a regular daytime bus service following the collapse of operator CT4N.
The village, which has more than 2,000 residents and a University of Nottingham campus, previously had an hourly service to Loughborough between about 7am and 5pm.
The 66 was the village’s only direct bus to Loughborough after the Skylink and Indigo services to Nottingham were withdrawn in previous years.
Following CT4N’s collapse, Kinchbus took over part of the route. The 66 now serves Sutton Bonington only at peak times, with two morning journeys between 7am and 8am and three between 4pm and 6pm.
Resident Freda Gamble said: “The 66 was a lifesaver. We miss it.”
CT4N entered administration after almost 50 years of operation. Its services stopped between Thursday 13 and Friday 14 August, and staff were made redundant.
Some residents learned about the closure through Facebook, while others were unaware that services had stopped.
Maggie Warren, 83, said: “I sat at the bus depot on Saturday for half an hour. No one had told me.”
Ms Warren and Ms Gamble were among a group of older residents using the Soar Valley community bus to visit Asda in Long Eaton on Friday 28 August.
The community service operates once a month and has 16 seats. It was driven by Rushcliffe borough and Nottinghamshire county councillor Andy Brown.
He said: “People, the elderly or those who can’t drive, can’t get out. Villages like Sutton Bonington, there is no bus connectivity.
“This is something I’ve been banging the drum about for a long time. We’ve been hard done to in this area.”
Residents can also use Nottsbus On Demand, which must be booked in advance. However, passengers said the service was unreliable and only took them to Hathern, where they would need to change buses.
One resident said: “Who wants to get on another bus with two bags of shopping?”
Residents previously used the 66 to reach banks, dentists, pharmacies and opticians in Loughborough because those services are not available in Sutton Bonington.
Under the revised timetable, passengers using a morning service could face a wait of about eight hours before the next bus home.
Older passengers are also unable to use concessionary bus passes on weekday journeys before 9.30am.
Freda Roberts, 81, said: “We’re all stranded. We can’t go anywhere. We’ve got no transport whatsoever. We’re just on our own. Nobody seems to be doing anything. Nobody of any authority.”
Ms Warren said: “As winter’s coming, people will be more depressed if they can’t get out of their houses.”
Residents have suggested extending some of the University of Nottingham’s Hopper bus journeys into the village.
The service operates up to four times an hour between University Park in Nottingham and the Sutton Bonington campus, which is north of the village.
Residents said: “It runs during the day, comes back and is reliable. Why can’t some of them come through the village? There are alternatives.”
The East Midlands Combined County Authority, which took responsibility for public transport in the region in April, has arranged replacements for several former CT4N services.
These include the 29 between Long Eaton and Sandiacre; the 510 and 511 between Beeston and Stapleford via Toton and Attenborough; and the 18 services between Nottingham and Stapleford and Wollaton via Beeston and Bramcote.
A spokesperson for the authority said: “The 66 service has been replaced by current travel arrangements that include scheduled peak-time journeys between Sutton Bonington and Loughborough, together with Nottsbus On Demand services during off-peak periods.
“The on-demand service provides convenient connections to the skylink Derby route, enabling continued access to Loughborough throughout the day. As with all supported bus services, arrangements remain subject to ongoing review by the operator.”
By Joseph Connolly, Local Democracy Reporter