EXTRA cash is being made available by North Yorkshire County Council to retain "Night Out Buses" in the Harrogate area.

For the past three years, the services have been funded by a grant from the Countryside Agency to the Harrogate Rural Locality Partnership, but that came to an end earlier this month.

In the past three years, about 6,500 people have used the weekend services to return home after visits to the theatre, cinema, local pubs, restaurants and nightclubs.

That is the equivalent of 2,000 late night car journeys and the buses are even believed to have helped to keep down car accident statistics.

Funding from the county council means that three of the five services can be retained until the end of August.

In the meantime, efforts will be made to seek alternative funding to support the services so they can continue into the future.

The services which will be retained are:

02.05 Saturday morning, Harrogate to Ripon, via Killinghall, Ripley, South Stainley, Burton Leonard, Bishop Monkton, and Littlethorpe;

22.50 Saturday evening service, Harrogate to Boroughbridge, via Goldsborough, Allerton, Green Hammerton, Whixley, Little Ouseburn, Great Ouseburn, Lower Dunsforth, Marton and Grafton and Ripon;

23.15 Saturday evening service, Harrogate to Pateley Bridge, via Killinghall, Hampsthwaite, Birstwith, Darley, Dacre, Summerbridge, Low Laithe and Wilsill.

The single fare will increase from £2.50 to £3.00 from the weekend of July 5 and 6.