Has Horsham got its own 'Bermuda Triangle'?

That’s the question being asked by residents who say that buses frequently ‘disappear off the face of the earth.’

Passengers say they are often left stranded in the town at night because buses fail to turn up.

Bob Stranks regularly travels into Horsham from Southwater on the 98 Metrobus but says that on countless occasions the bus has simply not arrived when it should.

And, he says, there is no communication from the bus company to explain what is happening.

"Between Horsham rail and bus stations there exists the Sussex equivalent of the Bermuda Triangle which swallows 98 buses without leaving a trace,” he said.

And he described illuminated information boards at local bus stops as "an exercise in misinformation.”

He said they frequently announce a bus is ‘due’ – but no bus arrives and the information board changes to the next one will arrive in an hour.

“Others have been puzzled as to how buses which are shown as 'due' suddenly disappear off the face of the earth,” said Bob.

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He added: “You can’t expect buses to arrive according to the timetable, you have to hope that they will. It’s more of an aspiration than an expectation.”

He said he understood Metrobus might have problems recruiting drivers “and yes, this might affect bus services.

"But this cannot excuse their woeful lack of communication which continues to leave passengers stranded at Horsham Bus Station waiting for the 98.”

He added: “Even on the most windswept platforms in the most far-flung reaches of the British Isles, when a train is cancelled there is an announcement to this effect. It doesn't bring the trains back, but at least passengers are kept informed.

"I’d prefer to know if a bus is coming, rather than not know.

"You would at least know then where you stand. You can then decide whether or not to get a taxi.”

Metrobus commercial director Nick Hill said: “Route 98 has been disrupted recently due to roadworks on Worthing Road near Cricketfield Road which have been causing long queues, affected all road users in the area including buses.

“In addition, the UK's transport industry is experiencing high levels of driver shortages and sadly we are being affected by this. We are recruiting new drivers as quickly as we can to help with the situation but as a result of these shortages, we have had to cancel some journeys at short notice, and we apologise for the inconvenience caused by this.

“We are implementing revised service levels on some other routes from October 15 to better match the resources available. This will help to ensure that the timetables are operated in full on all routes but the timetables will not change on routes in Horsham.

“We’re sorry for the short term inconvenience but we are confident that the situation will improve once the roadworks are completed and the changes are in place from October 15.”

l The Bermuda Triangle is a loosely-defined region in the western part of the North Atlantic Ocean where a number of aircraft and ships are said to have disappeared under mysterious circumstances.