The continuation of the Hambledon 503 bus service remains in doubt if further subsidy cuts are demanded by Surrey County councillors next month.

The struggle to maintain funding for rural services was outlined at a meeting between representatives of Hambledon and Busbridge parish councils, Waverley Borough Council, Surrey County Council and Hoppa community transport.

The parish councils had pressed for the meeting in the hope of securing the long-term future of the 503 and the nearby 523 Milford Hospital route. The current off-peak 503 is a vital life-line for a small number of regular users but the councils hoped for an increase in frequency to make the service more viable.

Both routes, which require significant subsidy from SCC, have survived two recent cash-saving reviews. However, Laurie James, SCC’s bus service planning manager, explained that the authority was facing further central government funding cuts and has yet to announce its budget for this year’s bus subsidies.

The 503 and 523 routes are operated by Stagecoach and the contracts for the services ends in August. With no budget yet in place Mr James has been unable to enter into detailed contract negotiations. He expects a budget to be announced next month and only then will he know how much money there is to maintain existing services.

The 503 operates on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, twice in each direction, and connects Hambledon with Milford, Godalming and Guildford. It is the only bus service in the village and is an essential service for some villagers to get to surgeries, supermarkets and the wider transport network. The 523 operates between Milford Hospital and Godalming on Tuesdays and Thursdays.

Mr James explained that the same bus is used for both services and is costed on the basis of it also undertaking school journeys for SCC in the mornings and afternoons. The costs involved in providing another bus for a daily peak service for Hambledon was prohibitive.

The new 100-homes development at Milford Hospital, called Leithfield Park, has a new daily peak-hour bus service, the 502, which is operated by Hoppa. It started at the beginning of January. But funding provided by the developers as a condition of planning permission will only last for two years and there is no guarantee of the service surviving unless passenger numbers are high.

Hambledon and Busbridge council had suggested that a long-term solution could be found in amalgamating the 503, 523 and 502 routes, and will continue to press for talks aimed at keeping a scheduled bus service for villagers.

It was agreed to meet again in April, by which time SCC will have set a budget, any cuts will have been announced and will be up for consultation, and the viability of the 502 will be clearer.

Our photograph shows the 503 in Malthouse Lane, in the centre of the village.