The 20 service for the south side of Wellington is likely to continue to run despite Somerset County Council (SCC) removing its subsidy.

The service, which runs from Seaton to Taunton, provides a lifeline to people who live in the Barn Meads Road, Burrough Way and Hoyles Road areas, as it provides a link to the town centre.

Cllr Andrew Govier, who represents the area on the county council, told the WWN: “‘I am delighted that this service looks set to continue. I was disappointed that SCC decided to cut the subsidy for this service but it looks as if the service will be maintained by Devon County Council.

“I know that a lot of local residents rely on this service to get them in and out of the town centre. We had started to look at contingency plans but maintaining the existing service was a priority and I hope that the new timetable will still provide this vital link.”

The service will no longer call into West Buckland, which is a concern to the villagers who also rely on the service. The county council is exploring how this gap can be filled either by re-routing existing services through the village or by using the Slinky bus.

Cllr Govier has also raised the issue of the lack of evening buses between Wellington and Taunton with both the town and county council. The issue has been highlighted by local residents who want to use public transport to access employment and leisure opportunities as well as visit relatives in Musgrove Park Hospital. The town council supported Cllr Govier’s suggestion that its should ask SCC to undertake research to establish what the cost of introducing two extra buses would be.

Cllr Govier said: “Many people have approached me about the lack of buses in the evening and I think it is something that needs to be investigated. The last bus back from Taunton is around 8pm and this excludes people from a range of activities that take place in Taunton. The town council has put money aside to look at funding services it feels are important and this is one we have agreed to consider.”

The county council will be using its bus tendering system to test what interest there is from existing companies to extend the service later into the night. This service is provided free of charge to the town council.

Cllr Govier added: “We have asked them to look at the cost of providing two extra buses on every evening except Sunday. These are likely to be leaving Taunton at around 9.30pm and 10.45pm. We have also asked about the cost of providing these services just on Friday and Saturday evenings.”

Once the costings are returned from Somerset County Council the matter will be discussed by the town council which will ultimately decide what is affordable and practical to implement.