A town’s ‘vital’ bus service used by both the elderly and schoolchildren is under threat as Dorset Council has ended its school transport contract with the operator.

Lyme Regis Town Council says it is doing all it can to save the number 71 bus service, which is operated by Damory.

According to the town council, the service is a lifeline to elderly, disabled and isolated residents, and it is linked to the school bus service for Charmouth Primary School, running as a town bus service between drop-off and pick-up times.

Dorset Council has re-tendered the school bus service, and awarded the contract to Dorset Community Transport, which has confirmed it will not be able to run the town’s bus service.

As it stands, the service will end on Saturday, August 31 if no replacement is found.

Lyme Regis Town Council say it has contacted four local bus companies with suitable accessible vehicles as it looks to find a replacement.

The bus was previously saved by the town council in 2017 after the then Dorset County Council withdrew its funding for the service. This has cost the town council more than £16,000 a year.

Mayor of Lyme Regis, Cllr David Ruffle, said: “We know how vital this service is to our residents. That is why we stepped in to save the service seven years ago and why we are doing everything we can to rescue it for a second time.

“This is a hugely frustrating situation as the decision has been taken out of the town council’s hands.

“We are now left with the prospect of either no town bus service or to run one at hugely increased cost to the town council.

“We have asked Dorset Council if it is willing to support the cost of a replacement town bus service.

“Based on the current situation, it seems very unlikely that we will be able to achieve a continuous town bus service when the existing service 71 comes to an end on 31 August.

“We will obviously do everything we can to avoid a break in service, but the timescales are looking very challenging, always assuming we have a willing operator and at an affordable cost.

“We will keep the community updated on our progress.”

Dorset Council said: “Dorset Council regularly reviews the vehicle sizes needed for our home-to-school transport routes. Depending on student numbers travelling on the bus, different sized vehicles are used accordingly.

“In the case of Charmouth School, Dorset Council was funding a 32-seater bus, for just 13 students. The bus was also too large for some of the rural narrow roads in the area, and could not pick up from some of the more remote households.

“We have now tendered for a 16-seater minibus which is more appropriate for the number of students and will be able to get to some of the more remote areas to pick up children.”