Plans to slash the county’s school travel budget will result in increased traffic congestion and potentially lead to more spending, The Watford Green Party has warned.

Hertfordshire County Council agreed on Monday a preliminary set of savings, designed to trim up to £6million a year from the cost of sending children to school.

Under the plans, which must be refined and agreed during a 13 week public consultation later in the year, subsidised and free travel will be scaled back to meet only minimum legal requirements, with only the poorest pupils and those with special needs catered for. Some bus routes could also be scrapped.

The measures, proposed by the council’s ruling Conservative administration, are broadly supported by the main Liberal Democrat opposition.

But Green Party councillor Ian Brandon has criticised the plans, saying they will force many families to travel by car. He said: “In the long run they are going to end up having to spend more money on infrastructure and highways projects to cope with the increase in traffic.

“The county has other options than massive cuts to ensure front line services can stay in place, but it does not seem to have the desire or will to look at these other options.”

Parents, schools, children and bus operators will all be asked to comment on a more detailed consultation document in October. A 13-week public consultation is scheduled to begin on October 18, with a series of public meetings planned in November.