Watford was a town that boasted three bus garages, now it can hardly boast a bus service worthy of the name.

More senior readers we recall them and may have watched the 1970s sitcom comic capers of driver Stan Butler and his family, conductor Jack Harper and Blakey the grumpy inspector in On The Buses.

Only that programme raised a few laughs over the years, whereas on the buses here now with Arriva and the other multitudinous operators, there is instead, raised blood pressure.

Arriva’s poor performance has been lengthy, painful and left many waiting at bus stops wistful for the days of London Country. Some achievement there.

The rot set in the 1980s with deregulation by that well-known bus traveller Mrs Thatcher.

Operators can pretty much pick and choose the routes they run and the timetables, or routes are often hastily publicly subsidised to try and plug a gap when a service is to be withdrawn. It is a system which doesn’t work.

Actually, a £4.80 Watford day ticket on Arriva’s services, if they do arrive, is good value given the area you can travel in and no parking charges.

But the size of the buses they use on the 10 and 20 routes are often too small and cancellations inevitably mean not everyone can get on the next. Pensioners, mums with pushchairs, in fact nearly everyone gets left behind. Don’t even get me started on the state of the 508! Watford Junction has become a vortex where buses terminate short of their route.

The good news is that I’m informed that from January 8, 13 extra drivers will be allocated to routes between Watford and Hemel Hempstead.

Some Christmas cheer at last from Arriva.

  • Cllr Matt Turmaine is Labour’s parliamentary candidate for Watford.