THE new transport secretary, Ken Skates, has been accused of “ignoring constituents” who have been left “in the lurch” after a bus service in Denbighshire was curtailed.

Cllr Gwyneth Ellis, who represents Edeirnion ward on Denbighshire County Council, has hit out at Mr Skates, who is also minister for North Wales, after he failed to respond to three requests for a meeting to discuss changes.

The Plaid Cymru councillor has branded the attitude of Mr Skates as “disrespectful” and “out of touch”.

Transport for Wales, which is owned by Welsh Government, changed the T3 Barmouth to Wrexham bus route to avoid the villages of Cynwyd, Llandrillo, and Llandderfel, adding a new T3C Service to link these villages to Corwen.

Villagers have been particularly affected as a result of these changes.

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Cllr Ellis has been contacted by several constituents who have been negatively impacted by the change, which include older people as well as students who are finding it more difficult to get to college.

Villagers must now make a connection at Corwen which is not always guaranteed, while the service has also been removed on a Sunday.

Plaid Cymru MS Mabon ap Gwynfor held a meeting with Transport for Wales about this issue but it has refused to reverse the changes.

Cllr Ellis said: “My constituents have been badly affected by the changes that have been made to the Barmouth to Wrexham bus route.

“Unfortunately, despite Transport for Wales being aware of the negative impact on local people, it has so far refused to reverse the decision.

“Local people were not consulted when these changes were made and their wishes are continuing to be ignored.

“The bus service used to go through Llandrillo and Cynwyd and this was used by local people. The changes to the route and the timetable have left constituents in the lurch.

“Now the bus goes from Bala to Corwen along the Glanrafon road. Though the new T3C service has been organised so that it goes from Llanuwchlyn to Corwen through Llandrillio and Cynwyd, it isn’t working properly for local people.

“For one thing, the new service doesn’t travel very often and it often misses the connection in Corwen entirely.

 “This has badly affected older and vulnerable residents in particular. It has disincentivised them from going to Wrexham or Llangollen on the bus because they’re worried that they will have to wait for hours in Corwen to get a connecting bus on the way home.

“Students from villages such as Cynwyd, Llandrillo, and Llandderfel, who attend Coleg Meirion-Dwyfor in Dolgellau are now forced to travel to and from Corwen for connecting buses, instead of directly, and this is making life more difficult for them.

“There is no direct bus back from the college site at Dollgellau to Cynwyd, Llandrillo, or Llandderfel, which I think is unfair to students who are essentially being forced to take the bus to Corwen, wait, and then have to catch the bus back from Corwen down to the villages.”

In response, a Welsh Government spokesperson said: “We’ve received the councillor’s correspondence and they will receive a response shortly – we apologise for the delay.”