A decision to scrap taxi vouchers for the disabled and elderly has been defended by Swindon Borough Council.

In March, locals who rely on the transport scheme started receiving letters telling them that the £80 worth of taxi vouchers they used to receive would stop and would be replaced with bus passes. 

But many people who used the service have said that if they could a bus they would and that move is hitting the disabled and making their lives harder. 

The Labour-run council has also come under criticism from the Conservatives for this move, with shadow cabinet member for adults social care Lawrence Elliot saying he was 'dismayed'. 

But the council has defended the decision, reiterating the financial state it's in. 

Councillor Chris Watts said: "Dealing with the unprecedented £15 million in-year deficit left by the failure of the budget set by the previous administration, whilst having to budget for a further £25 million of savings for next year resulted in many difficult decisions being made to stop Swindon Borough Council joining many other local authorities in municipal insolvency.

"In this case, we have been able to provide an alternative solution to mitigate the changes. The taxi vouchers scheme provided poor value, only being able to fund two or three round trips per year.  

"Therefore, instead of taxi vouchers, a concessionary bus pass will be issued, valid for use on community transport services. Where conventional buses cannot be used, this service will be available instead.

"From this, we will seek to build a robust demand response travel community service for residents that will also further support the community transport providers whilst we work to ensure stability of the budget available.

"The bigger picture is to safeguard community travel provision moving forward.

He added: "It is regretful that the previous administration criticises the current administration for having the make the necessary decisions as part of its measures to protect the financial position of Swindon Borough Council, from the financial mismanagement during their time in office locally and nationally."

In his opposition to the move, Cllr Elliot said: “I was dismayed to learn that the new Labour administration have removed the funding for the taxi vouchers. It is right that any proposals to remove services in this way are always subject to a thorough impact assessment and followed by a consultation and I’ve not seen evidence of either.

"The £24,000 cost is a drop in the ocean for the council but will have a devastating effect on many people’s lives across the borough.

"It’s a shameful and spiteful cut coming from a Labour administration on the most vulnerable which, in the great scheme of things, involves a minuscule amount of money.

“The budget has now been set but I would ask the leader to reconsider and reinstate this small but valuable service and take the money from an area of spending that won’t have such a disastrous and traumatic impact on people’s lives”

Similar letters were sent out to residents in March 2022 under the previous Conservative-led administration informing them that the concessionary taxi voucher and travel companion bus pass schemes were being withdrawn. 

But the council at the time would later say that these letters were "sent out in error". 

A spokesperson said: "The Concessionary Taxi Vouchers and Travel Companion Bus Passes schemes will continue as normal. We must stress that any proposals to change services in this way are always subject to a thorough impact assessment and followed by a consultation.

"We will be writing to all those affected to inform them of the error and to apologise for any distress it may have caused."