Pensioner crawls home up hill on hands and knees after bus route axed

Royston Pressley, 82, found trying to reach his house by a fellow village resident in Hampshire

A pensioner was forced to crawl on his hands and knees up a hill with his shopping after his bus route was axed.
Royston Pressley, 82, was found crawling up the pavement in the village of Netley in Hampshire by a fellow resident who said he told her: “That hill is going to kill me.”
The retired ship builder and yacht decorator was trying to get up a hill which residents consider “steep, even for a younger person” on his way home after his usual bus route was axed by bus company Bluestar.
Bluestar announced changes to its bus routes on Sept 1 to improve journey times in the area, but some stops serving Netley and other villages were axed as a result.
Speaking from his home, Mr Pressley said: “I’m not too happy about it. It’s a bit much taking the bus off us – that’s the only way you get to Southampton from here.
“It’s essential for going to the shops. It’s alright going down, it’s the coming back that is no joke. I’m past it.”
Mr Pressley’s nephew and niece emigrated from the UK to Australia, meaning he has no immediate family to help him, so relies on carers or friends.
On the incident when he crawled, he added: “I got picked up pretty quickly. But I could have been there all night – it happens.”
Mr Pressley has now resigned himself to gardening, which he said he has a “lot” to be getting on with.
On whether Bluestar will reverse its route change, he continued: “I thought they might do, but I doubt it. They are a big company, they’ve got a lot of people around here for buses. It’s a nice little village, but I’ve seen a few changes.”
An urgent meeting was held in the village, which is home to 6,000 people according to the latest census, to discuss the future of the bus route.
Some pensioners in attendance were in tears at the fact they may be left stranded without a bus service.
The meeting was attended by more than 50 people, including the local MP and a council leader. It heard that the stops axed by the company carried about 20 people per day.
June Bangs, 81, said of the day she found the pensioner crawling up the hill: “I went out to my garden bin and found the poor gentleman on his hands and knees trying to get home.
“I rushed as quick as I could towards him and when I got to him, he looked up at me and said: ‘That hill is going to kill me.’ This bus service is a lifeline for us.”
Rachel Foulkes, 59, a family friend who takes care of Mr Pressley, said she was like a daughter to the 82-year-old and he had asked her to represent him at the meeting.
Mrs Foulkes said: “He gave up his car two years ago and relies on the bus for everything. He goes on the bus to [the] Co-op, Hamble Square and Woolston.”
She added that he was very upset and that Bluestar had tipped his world upside down, saying: “He can get down to the bus stop on Hound Road but the hill back up on Woolston Road is steep, even for a younger person. I hope that Bluestar listens to what we have to say.”
Another attendee, Doreen Salter, 88, said: “This has floored me. This will mean we are completely cut off. It is just a tragedy for us older people.”
Angela Humphrey, 70, added: “I have thought to myself before: is this a viable service for a company to run? But it’s a vital service.”
Bluestar said the changes would improve journey times and allow the bus service to extend beyond Southampton city centre to Central Station, but the changes have come at the expense of stops in Netley and its neighbouring villages.
Mrs Foulkes said although only 20 or so residents had been using that section of the bus route, that was still 20 people who were going to be impacted.
“Netley isn’t serviced by any other buses other than the number 15,” she said. “This is what is wrong with society. Old people struggle with technology, online banking, doing e-consultations.
“Some of them are really savvy but the majority haven’t got the internet.
“Even arranging the meeting, [the bus company] put a message out on Facebook. I saw it but there are lots of people who aren’t on Facebook, which is another example of technology not working.”
Mrs Foulkes spoke of another person she provides care for who is partially blind and who also said she would not be braving the walk down to the new bus stop.
Wendy Alison, 52, said the new bus route had already been causing havoc on the road for her elderly neighbours.
The teacher said: “It’s had a huge impact already. The hill is a killer. From our point of view it’s the fact it’s such a steep hill at the bottom.
“Luckily, they have put a bench at the top so people can have a rest.”
Paul Holmes, the Hamble Valley MP, said: “I am very saddened to hear about this – nobody should have to be in such a situation.
“I am continuing to work with the local community and Bluestar to find a solution that works.”
Richard Tyldsley, the general manager at Bluestar, said: “We are continuing to operate Bluestar 15. We do appreciate the inconvenience the change of route in Butlocks Heath may have on some customers.
“Bluestar 15 still operates locally though, with existing and new bus stops being located within a short distance.
“For a small number of our customers there is a slightly longer walk, following the omission of Ingleside and Woolston Road, but we have looked very closely at this and made the decision in order to improve the overall route.”
He added: “Our review of Bluestar 15 led us to conclude that journey times were too slow, and punctuality was not as good as we expect. Also, some key connections in the city were not available.
“We strongly believe that these improvements will develop demand for the route – directly ensuring that we are able to continue operating it well into the future.”