Campaigners say it is a “very dark day” for Hertfordshire after bus services were axed.

The ruling Conservative party at Hertfordshire County Council will cut £1.47million from the bus budget and will withdraw funding from services which run after 7.30pm.

Funding will also be axed from contracted services on Sunday, except those which directly serve hospitals, including Watford General Hospital.

WHAT DO YOU THINK? HAVE YOUR SAY BELOW

Services affected in Borehamwood include the 306, which will no longer run on Sundays or in the evenings.

The first 306 buses of the morning from Watford will also be withdrawn, and on Saturdays the section of the route serving the north of Borehamwood will start later and finish earlier.

School services on the 658, serving Borehamwood and St Albans, will be cut and buses during peak times will also be reduced.

Hertfordshire County Council has said it will now work with bus operators to try to keep services running, and is relying on private companies to step in and save them.

Lawrence Stack, of Croxdale Road, Borehamwood, spent £500 of his own money on banners and leaflets to try to save the service.

After finding out his efforts were in vain, he said he was “disappointed” – but does not regret the fight.

He said: “It’s disgusting that they’ve just dumped the services. It is disastrous, I was hoping we’d at least keep the 306 Sunday service to Watford because it’s a good link to the hospital.

“It is just nasty. We could have had a skeleton service at least – I wasn’t asking for it to run as it did, but just something to cover it.

“I am annoyed as well because nobody as kept me in the loop about all of this. However nothing is a wasted campaign, I gave it a go and at least I can say I tried.”

The Elstree and Borehamwood Residents Association backed the campaign to save the buses.

Of the 1,582 people who responded to the consultation, 1,097 said they were against the proposals to withdraw funding for county council subsidised services after 7.30pm, with just 197 supporting the plans.

Almost 1,000 also objected to plans to slash the funding for services on Sundays, except those serving hospitals and 226 people supported the plans.

More than 22,000 signatures opposing cuts to the council’s bus budget were received by council chiefs, during both consultations.

After a debate about the subject at county hall on Friday, Martin Abrams, from the Campaign for Better Transport, said: “It’s a very dark day for Hertfordshire.

“What this means is, some of the most vulnerable people in Hertfordshire are going to be hit the hardest.”

According to council documents, bus operators are concerned about the effects these cuts could have.

Labour’s transport spokesman Councillor Sharon Taylor said: “This is a betrayal of the people of Hertfordshire after an astonishingly high level of response to both of the consultations that overwhelmingly showed Hertfordshire residents did not want these cuts pushed through as they need and value their bus services.

“This action by Hertfordshire Tories effectively imposes a curfew on many residents and removes bus services from others altogether”.

Council chiefs have argued the changes would affect just “two per cent” of passenger journeys in the county.

Speaking at Friday's debate, Councillor Terry Douris, said: “Whilst I accept there were 15,000 people who responded to the first consultation and a significant number who responded to the second, that is actually a very small number of the population.”

How will these changes affect you? Comment below or e-mail aslater@london.newsquest.co.uk