FORMER Green councillor Craig Simmons has criticised Oxford Bus Company for changing a busy route serving East Oxford.

Environmental consultant Mr Simmons, who lives in Magdalen Road, said changes to the No 4 service made at the start of the month had “cut off” residents in Iffley Fields, Donnington, Rose Hill and other streets off Iffley Rd, from areas to the west of the city centre, including the railway station and shops along Botley Road.

Until May 8, the route linked Rose Hill and Abingdon via Botley, but it now runs from Wood Farm to Abingdon via Botley and no longer uses Iffley Road, which is served instead by the new route 3A, linking Rose Hill with the city centre.

The company made the changes because of Oxfordshire County Council’s major roadworks in Iffley Road, which will run until November next year.

While some residents in Iffley Road only have a short walk to Cowley Road, where they can catch a No 5 bus to the railway station, Mr Simmons said many people were being inconvenienced.

He added: “The company has brought in this change because of the roadworks but I think it’s the wrong decision.

“My firm encourages staff and visitors to travel to us by public transport but this has been made exceptionally difficult by the axeing of the No 4.

“We’re next door to the Pegasus Theatre, which has no parking and has hundreds of visitors by bus.”

Louisa Weeks, the bus company's operations director, said: “We’re sorry some people in the Rose Hill and Iffley Road areas feel they have been cut off from the railway station, but we had little choice, and they haven’t been abandoned altogether.

“Extensive roadworks are now under way on the Iffley Road. There won’t be enough time available to run to the station without creating long gaps between buses on the rest of the route.

“It was not a change we made lightly but it is still possible to get from the Iffley Road area to the railway station conveniently and without extra cost.”

Ms Weeks said passengers from Iffley Road travelling to the railway station could buy a transfer ticket and change in Speedwell Street.

In the other direction, they can catch a No 4 or No 5 and make a similar change at the High Street stops to board a 3A service.

In addition, the Key smartcard ticket allows passengers to use any combination of services for their journeys.

Ms Weeks added: “We realise it’s not as convenient as a through bus but we have to make prudent decisions to ensure we provide a reliable service to the majority of our Rose Hill and Iffley Rd passengers during the roadworks.”