A BUS service from Bishop Middleham to Durham could be reinstated thanks to calls from residents.

Parents of a Durham Sixth Form pupil were left with no choice but to ferry their teenager to school themselves after Arriva North East scrapped a village stop.

But their appeal to Durham County Council (DCC) and the bus company have sparked moves to alter the time of another service to allow travel between the village and city.

Before July 23, the 56 bus towards Durham went through Bishop Middleham at around 7.30am but now only stops off at 7am.

The change means youngsters going to school for a 9am start would have to wait in the city for around one-and-a-half hours.

Meanwhile in the evening the only buses stopping in Bishop Middleham run at 6.50pm and 7.50pm which parents say is too late for pupils clocking off at 3.30pm.

The change has also affected residents, one of whom labelled it as “terrible” on Facebook.

Nick Knox, area managing director for Arriva North East, said the decision was made to pull the stop-off due to very low passenger use and to improve punctuality and journey times for other users.

He said: “We appreciate that this new arrangement is less convenient for some passengers. We apologise for any inconvenience this change has caused.”

However, in an effort to assist student and commuter travel, DCC is working with Scarlet Band to alter the timing of a service 113 journey to allow “a more convenient departure” from Bishop Middleham, albeit with a connection in Ferryhill onto Durham

Andy Leadbeater, DCC’s integrated passenger transport manager, said: “We have spoken to the family and fully understand their concerns.

“The service is not one we subsidise and, therefore, we are not in a position to alter that decision.”