A ‘bizarre’ rule means a popular bus is banned from picking up passengers in two villages it passes through.

The 99 ‘Chew Valley Cat’ launched in September 2024 and runs in a figure of eight around the corner of North East Somerset which had been — until recently — cut off from all public transport.

Locals have described the new bus as “revolutionary” but said it is “nonsense” that it drives past the bus stops in Litton and Chewton Mendip, but will not pick up passengers there.

The bus has to drive through the villages in order to get between the stops in East Harptree and Farrington Gurney. But if it stopped there, it could land local politicians in court.

The bus is funded by the West of England Combined Authority’s WESTlocal scheme, which allows local groups to bid for funding for local buses. But the funding cannot be used to prioritise people who live outside the West of England, and Bath and North East Somerset Council is a member of the combined authority while Somerset Council is not.

Speaking at a meeting of the combined authority’s committee on January 31, Dr Phil Collins, who lives in the Chew Valley, said: “This is a nonsense as allowing stopping at these places would not cause anyone else to be deprioritised and would not require any additional actions to be taken by the area or any other local authority as the stops already exist and the bus passes directly past them.

“More bizarre still is that to do so would not introduce any further costs or any further mileage to the route but would provide a valuable service to the residents in the West of England as well as to those in those two outside villages. Instead they have to watch the bus drive past every day.”

Meanwhile, the service needs to be financially sustainable by March 2026 when the funding for it is set to end. Dr Collins, part of the Chew Valley’s the local sustainable travel group who had bid for the funding, added that allowing people in Litton and Chewton Mendip to board the bus would help in the battle to increase usership.

Dr Collins did praise the bus for reducing “rural isolation” and aiding “decarbonisation.” In 2023, the valley was left without any timetabled public transport after all buses serving the area were axed in a wave of bus cuts that hit most of rural North East Somerset.

In April 2024, the WESTlocal X91 Chew Valley Sprint was set up under the scheme, running between several villages in the valley to Bristol and back.

West of England Metro Mayor Dan Norris said: “On many levels I completely agree. It is illogical and it doesn’t make sense. However there are other factors involved and we are trying to find a way through. It’s hard I’m afraid.”

If the combined authority spends money for the WESTlink scheme to benefit people outside of the West of England area, the combined authority would be open to facing a judicial review.