Passengers are furious about cuts to what they say is a vital bus service that serves their community.

Now a campaign has been mounted by residents in the Lidget Green and Great Horton areas of Bradford to restore the 680 First bus service to its original half-hourly frequency.

Under the revised timetable, the 680 still operates half-hourly in the daytime between Bradford Inter-change and Heaton, but now only extends from Heaton to Smiddles Lane hourly.

More than 200 people have already signed a petition objecting to the change because they claim it has badly affected their ability to get to shops, work, schools and health facilities.

Metro, the West Yorkshire Passen-ger Transport Executive, said the leg of the journey from Heaton to Smiddles Lane was subsidised from the public purse because it was not commercially viable.

A Metro spokesman said: “Having monitored the number of users on that section of the journey, there were not sufficient users to justify funding it from public funds so, in agreement with the bus operator, we have decided to reduce the service.”

But Carolyn Jowett, of Glenrose Drive, who led the petition, said the change had inconvenienced many people along the route.

Mrs Jowett, who is disabled and relies on the 680 to get to the city centre, said: “This service is vital to the area. People with limited mobility or on low incomes are most affected.

“I get tired very easily, so I use the 680 bus instead of climbing the hill to Lidget Green or the hill to Four Lane Ends to catch the bus straight to town.”

She said the timetable revision had also hampered pupils travelling to St Bede’s, Rhodesway and Thornton schools, and Bolton Royd College.

“For example, you can catch a bus at Lidget Green at 7.58am and there is not another one until 9.17am which is too late for children attending schools,” said Mrs Jowett.

Mrs Jowett said she planned to submit the petition to Bradford Council on Tuesday and to Metro and the First bus company at a later date.

e-mail: will.kilner@telegraphandargus.co.uk