Town council could take over running of bus station from Shropshire Council
Oswestry's run-down bus station could be taken over by the town council, if a motion is supported at its next meeting.
The bus station on Oswald Road - one of the gateways into the town - is managed by Shropshire Council. It receives fees from bus operations which use the station.
Two of Oswestry Town Council's Green Party members, Mayor Jay Moore and Councillor Duncan Kerr, had put a motion to Monday's finance committee mooting that the town could take over managing the bus station.
The Green Party supports using public transport as an alternative to private vehicles.
The motion says the bus station is in a poor state of repair.
"This motion calls for the town council to propose that we enter negotiations to manage the bus station on behalf of Shropshire Council and in return receive all the fees charged to operators. The conclusion of these negotiations to be brought back to council for a final decision.”
In the same motion the two councillors also propose the town council takes over a busy bus shelter close to the town's Sainsbury's store.
“Improving infrastructure is key to increasing the number of people using bus services in Oswestry," it says.
The bus shelter on Black Gate Street is in a poor state of repair and was not adopted by Oswestry Town Council in the past, for this reason.
"This however, means that there is little if no hope of improvement. This motion asks for Oswestry Town Council to adopt this bus shelter and replace it."
Green councillors form the administration on Oswestry Town Council.
In recent years the council has launched several initiatives to support using alternatives to the car.
These have included supporting cycling projects - including a trial rickshaw service.
It also launched free pub travel on certain routes connecting the town centre with outlying residential areas on Saturdays. It also worked alongside Oswestry Business Improvement District to promotes its initiative to night time businesses in the run up to Christmas.
The finance committee will be held in the Guildhall in Oswestry on Monday, starting at 7pm.
The agenda begins with a section when members of the public can ask questions of councillors. More details about the meeting can be found on the council's website at oswestry-tc.gov.uk.
