OLDER people will be hit by bus timetable updates and an operator’s decision to go paperless across the county, according to a charity.

First Essex bus service has revised and updated most of its bus timetables.

The 103 and 104 services connecting Colchester to Harwich and Manningtree will also change.

As well as this, the public transport company is taking steps to becoming a paperless organisation to protect the environment.

However, residents feel they weren’t well informed about the move.

Dorothy Cole, secretary of Age Concern in Harwich, said: “I wasn’t aware of the timetable changes until just now. There are times when I am at the bus station waiting for the 104 bus, but it just simply doesn’t turn up, so I have to call a taxi.

“The timetable changes do affect a lot of pensioners.

“Sometimes it can take weeks until the timetables at the bus stops are updated.

“This new move of going all digital will greatly affect older people.

“They don’t have access to the internet at all, most of them don’t even have a phone.

“I know this, because I work with them twice a week.

“It is a very big concern, as most pensioners and other people won’t know about the times and will affect their journeys.”

A First Essex spokesman said: “The demand for leaflets has reduced considerably over the last few years as most people access their information in a different way.

“Passengers that require a printed timetable can visit one of our travel centres to request a printed copy or call our customer service team. We encourage customers to use digital channels where possible.”

The timetable changes started on Sunday, September 1.

The Monday to Saturday timetable for services 103 and 104 were revised.

An additional Monday to Friday morning peak journey will operate on 104 service towards Colchester and the evening peak service is being revised.

The Monday to Friday off-peak and Saturday timetables have both been revised to operate at a reduced frequency.

The updated 103 and 104 timetable can be found online at https://bit.ly/2kIOzB4.