Bus company proposing to close Aylesbury and Wycombe Depots

Arriva says it's taken the difficult decision to begin consultation on the closures, which would see the company no longer operate some services between Aylesbury, High Wycombe and Oxford.

Arriva say it's due to both sides continue to be loss-making, but there will be no immediate impact on services. They also plan to work with local authority partners to explore ways to minimise the impact, and will try to avoid redundancies by re-deploying as many colleagues as possible to another UK Bus location and/or role.  They will also continue to operate the contracted services on behalf of Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Councils for the remainder of the agreed contract term.

You can read the full statement, and details of the routes affected, below.

We have taken the difficult decision to begin consultation with our colleagues on the proposed closure of our Aylesbury and High Wycombe depots. Despite extensive efforts to turn the situation around, including making network changes to better reflect local demand, both sites continue to be loss-making.

There will be no immediate impact on services and we will work with local authority partners to explore ways to minimise the impact, should we withdraw services. 

We will keep our customers and our employees updated throughout this period.
If the closures go ahead, Arriva will no longer operate the following services: 

o    X7/X8 – Aylesbury to Oxford
o    X9/X90 – Aylesbury to High Wycombe
o    2 – High Wycombe to Booker
o    3 – High Wycombe to Castlefield
o    4 – High Wycombe to Lane End
o    5/5a – High Wycombe to Bourne End
o    6/6a – High Wycombe to Bourne End
o    7/7a – High Wycombe to Bourne End and Maidenhead
o    10 – High Wycombe to Downley 
o    11 – High Wycombe to Penn
o    12 – High Wycombe to Micklefield
o    13 – High Wycombe to Totteridge
o    800/850/X80 – High Wycombe to Henley on Thames and Reading
o    X9/90 – Aylesbury to High Wycombe.

If the closures go ahead, the X5 (Aylesbury to Hemel Hempstead) would continue to operate running from our Hemel Hempstead depot instead.

Arriva will continue to operate the contracted services listed below on behalf of Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Councils for the remainder of the agreed contract term:

When would the changes happen?

The proposals are being consulted on with colleagues. Should the closures go ahead, the earliest changes would happen is July 27, 2024. We would work closely with our local authority partners to minimise the impact of any changes and other operators may choose to run the services if they are no longer delivered by Arriva.

If these services stop operating, can I get a refund of my ticket?

If these services do stop operating, you can request a refund for your ticket via this link https://www.arrivabus.co.uk/help/contact-us (external link)

If the proposal goes ahead what will happen to the Arriva employees in this area?

Should the proposal go ahead we will seek to avoid redundancies by re-deploying as many colleagues as possible to another UK Bus location and/or role.  

Buckinghamshire Council are disappointed that this announcement has come with little warning:

Peter Martin, Deputy Cabinet Member for Transport said: "Arriva have made Buckinghamshire Council aware of proposals to consult on the closure of both their Smeaton Close, Aylesbury and Lincoln Road, High Wycombe bus depots from the end of July. "Bus services in England are deregulated with the majority of services provide by commercial bus operators. Buckinghamshire Council does not have control over the commercial bus operators and the services they provide in our local area and neither are we in a position to subsidise or take over the proposed routes affected. "While we are sympathetic to the reasons Arriva have given for their decision, we are also disappointed that this announcement has come with little warning and we are concerned about the negative impact this could have for passengers. We are aware that another bus operator, Carousel Buses, have indicated their intention to take over the vast majority of affected routes which is welcomed. We will be working closely with them and other local bus operators over the coming weeks to ensure that services are sustained wherever possible."