The owner of a taxi company says he finds it “amazing” that an on-demand minibus scheme is still operating in Watford – and believes it is doing more harm than good.

The £1.5 million Arriva Click service has been under-fire over its lack of passengers ever since it launched in 2020.

In the summer, Watford Borough Council warned the service could be axed if numbers did not improve.

Read more: £1.5 million minibus service could face axe if users fail to rise

Although Arriva Click enjoyed a record month of riders in October – 2318 - it was still on average only around 10-15% of what the council was projecting for each month at the start of the year.

Watford Observer: Watford Borough Council awarded bus operator Arriva a £1.5million contract to run its Click service in the town until at least 2024Watford Borough Council awarded bus operator Arriva a £1.5million contract to run its Click service in the town until at least 2024 (Image: Watford Borough Council)

Barry Deakin, who owns Eagle Cars, says he warned the council this type of scheme would not work but says his advice was “ignored”.

He claimed: “Demand response transport will never work. Passengers travelling from the same place at roughly the same time and going to roughly the same place is extremely rare. 

“The council visited similar schemes in Oxford and Sittingbourne before going ahead – both have since failed.

“Hand on my heart, I’m in Watford every day and I see the vehicles empty 80% of the time. I never see more than one person on it.”

Read more: Watford Junction trains cancelled for six days close to Christmas

Watford Observer: Council documents show Arriva (pre-Covid and award of contract) was estimating just under 270,000 rides in Watford by 2023/24. October 2022 total rides (not passengers) of 1,891 was a record since launch in 2020.Council documents show Arriva (pre-Covid and award of contract) was estimating just under 270,000 rides in Watford by 2023/24. October 2022 total rides (not passengers) of 1,891 was a record since launch in 2020. (Image: Watford Borough Council)

Arriva Click was one of Peter Taylor’s pledges when he was elected as mayor in 2018. The aim was to help the environment by getting people out of their cars and ride-share.

But Mr Deakin thinks the minibuses are causing harm to the environment.

He said: “They’re driving around all day with no one or one person on board. That’s not very efficient.

“All this has done is highlight to me just how much councils waste money. It’s amazing. But Peter is determined to pursue his manifesto.”

Mr Deakin is adamant his will to scrap Arriva Click is not business-related, saying: “Arriva Click has never taken business away from us and it never will.”

Watford Observer: An Arriva Click minibusAn Arriva Click minibus (Image: Watford Borough Council)

Mr Taylor has told the Watford Observer he wants to make Arriva Click a “success” in Watford.

He added: “Public transport and greener ways of travelling remain a priority for me and I want to invest in more green travel options to reduce congestion, air pollution and carbon emissions.

“Arriva Click provides a unique service valued by people who feel poorly served by other less reliable or more expensive services.”

To learn more about Arriva Click in Watford, click here.

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