A BUS route relied upon by elderly and vulnerable people will have its operating hours cut back to save cash.

The 607 circular route, which serves Hatfield Garden Village, will finish three-and-a-half hours earlier from March 28.

The last bus will now leave Hatfield Station at 7.35pm on Monday to Friday, instead of 11.05pm.

At the weekend, the last round trip will start from the station at 6.35pm.

A regular user, who did not wish to be named, told the WHT: “All the bus drivers are a bit cagey, they’re all worried about their jobs.

“Elderly and vulnerable people rely on the service.”

He added: “It will cause quite a lot of hardship to a lot of people – it’s a very popular service.”

But, despite the cuts, the county council says the 607’s new timetable “should hopefully accommodate the majority of commuters travelling home from the station to the Garden Village”.

A spokeswoman said: “The usage of the service in the later evening is limited and funding at the current level cannot be sustained for a limited number of customers.

“A change in service is therefore being made to maximise the use of our service support funding and Section 106 funding on other transport projects, including the provision of real-time passenger information.”