A bus company has dropped plans to halve the number of services on one route after concerns were raised about how it would affect older passengers.

Brighton and Hove bus company had consulted on plans to reduce number 18 buses to two an hour rather than four.

A campaign, including a petition to keep the frequency of buses, was launched and now the company say the proposal is “not currently being progressed”.

Nick Hill, Commercial Director at Brighton & Hove Buses said: “This proposal for route 18 is not currently being progressed, and there are no plans to change the route in April. It was an idea discussed with Buswatch to garner their feedback and it has not been progressed further at present.”

“However, passenger numbers on route 18 are still lower than pre-Covid due to altered travel patterns and working habits. Unless we see an increase in current passenger numbers, we will need to look at alternative options for the route, as it is currently one of the least used services in the city.”

Brighton and Hove Buswatch claimed that the bus company were planning on reducing the service as it was not making a profit.

They also claim that the bus is only used in one direction, to climb up the hill, whereas many passengers walk down into the city centre rather than use the service.

Tristram Burden, 43, who launched a petition to save the bus route, said: “I started the petition as soon as I heard that the service was going to be cut.

“I have lived here for three years and knowing the area of Queen’s Park with the hill and how difficult it can be to get into town it seems like something I really wanted to get behind.”

"I'm delighted our campaign to stop the cuts to the Number 18 service have been successful, I'll be remaining vigilant though, with warnings from Brighton and Hove Buses that the route is not profitable, despite the fact they made a staggering £15 million in just one year before the Covid-19 pandemic."