When you have a virtual monopoly as a bus operator you can do virtually what you want in the name of providing a service. Least ways that is how the latest piece of consultation on National Express West Midlands (NXWM) service changes in the Willenhall area appears to most people we have spoken to.

On their website NXWM tells us that changes in travel patterns and increases in traffic congestion have meant that they have reviewed some of the services that they operate in Walsall & Wolverhampton. Changes will be made during summer 2016.

They go on to tell us that feedback from customers, staff and other stakeholders has been considered in developing proposals for a revised network of bus routes and now they’d like your views – good or bad!

Forgive us for being cynical but that comes across as, NXWM have made changes and want to justify what they have done by shifting the blame for some pretty poor service provision onto changes in the way the long suffering travelling public use their buses!

Judging by the many complaints that Willenhall Liberal Democrats have received over many months abandoning large estates in the Willenhall area will achieve nothing in the drive for more reliable bus services. We say that as the bulk of complaints we have received have been more about buses not turning up at all rather than just running late.

It would be interesting to know who NXWM spoke to in coming up with their proposals? We can’t imagine residents from the Beacon and Allens Rough Estates in New Invention saying to NXWM “You know what, we’d be quite happy to have withdraw the 41 Walsall to Willenhall service from our estate and we’d love you to replace it with the 69 Walsall to Wolverhampton service. And you know what, don’t bother to run it via The Square, Lichfield Road either”.

Neither can we imagine residents on the Wood Lane Estate, Short Heath chipping in with “Sure NXWM we would be happy to loose a service link to Wolverhampton and we’ll just have to find another way to get to shop at Sainsbury’s at Reedswood, go ahead and stop the 69 Walsall to Wolverhampton service running through our estate”.

As we said earlier, forgive us for being cynical NXWM but this smacks more about running services to suit you rather than the travelling public.

This is the sort of thing that happens when a private monopoly makes an executive decision in isolation unlike the comprehensive consultation that was carried a few years ago through CENTRO involving all bus operators large and small, passengers and local Councillors. On the back of that consultation The Square at New Invention became a major hub for bus services linking us to Willenhall, Walsall, Wednesfield, Bloxwich, Bilston, Cannock and Pelsall. Lib Dem Councillor Ian Shires was able to convince Walsall Council to turn a derelict Garage area at the back of The Square into a long stay car park which has helped to sustain the shops and provide a “Park and Ride” for local bus users.

If NXWM carry out what they are proposing all this will be at risk and more people will choose to use their cars rather than the bus.

Willenhall North’s Lib Dem Cllr Ian Shires is to ask CENTRO to intervene and arrange talks with NXWM to get them to look at the bigger picture.