MK Connect bus service apologises after woman is left stranded in Milton Keynes

A woman left stranded after an MK Connect bus driver went to the wrong location to pick her up has had her request for compensation refused.

The woman ordered a bus to pick her up on Monday evening to take her from Bradville to her night shift work in Emerson Valley.

I left plenty of time because you can be waiting for up to 40 minutes before you get picked up."

She went to the pick up point at 9.10pm - only to watch the bus on her online tracker go in completely the wrong direction.

"I was left high and dry, unable to book a new bus ,wait for it and arrive at work in time," she said.

"As a result I had to call a regular taxi and pay £10.30 instead of the £2.50 MK Connect would charge."

The woman, after getting confirmation in writing that the MK Connect driver went to the wrong location, asked if her cab fare could be reimbursed as an apology.

"They admit they sent driver to the wrong place but they won't pay the cab fare," she said. "It was kind of pointless me complaining."

She added: "The idea of being able to get a bus from anywhere to anywhere isn't a bad one - provided it is run properly. MK Connect have several issues and bugs in the system which ruin things.

"For example, when you order a electric bus, you get told a estimated pickup time - only for the bus to go off and charge for half hour. MK Connect say this doesn't happen and you don't get buses that are charging. But I know this isn't true as I've experienced this once, having a bus three minutes away only for it to veer off to a charge station after I'd already waited nearly 40 minutes.

"I've found when you complain they either fob you off or outright ignore you."

The Citizen put all the woman's claims to MK Council, who run the MK Connect service.

A spokesman offered to reimburse the £2.50 bus fare but not the £10.30 cab fare.

He said: “We’re aware of the issue and have apologised to the customer. We’ll raise this directly with the operator to ensure drivers are regularly trained so passengers have a safe and comfortable journey.”

The spokesman added: "We’re only able refund the MK-Connect journey as the passenger didn’t use the service."

Milton Keynes Council scrapped many of its subsidised bus routes in April last year, replacing them with the bespoke MK Connec t "demand responsive transport system" that people can book via their phones or online.

The fleet of seven-seater electric vans offers a more efficient, cleaner and greener way to get around the city, says the council.