A HAMPSHIRE MP is calling for a change in the law after a bitter war between two bus firms cost passengers more than 100 services.

Public transport giant Bluestar has been accused of “appalling behaviour” by Eastleigh MP Chris Huhne after twice clashing with smaller family-run rival Black Velvet.

Passengers will see more than 100 journeys axed in the latest clash over the busy Eastleigh to Fair Oak service.

The Fair Oak Flyer was launched by the smaller firm earlier this year, running 55 trips per day. However, Black Velvet claim the service quickly became unviable when Bluestar upped its own number 2 shuttle service, making 50 journeys a day, and swamped the area.

After Black Velvet decided it would have to pull out of the area on Saturday its huge competitor announced plans to cancel its own service on June 14.

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The same thing happened months previously when Black Velvet had started to run a service through Velmore and Chilworth only to be squeezed out by a new Bluestar Beep service running along the same roads three minutes ahead.

After months of these two buses following each other around, Black Velvet dropped the route – within weeks Bluestar followed suit.

Liberal Democrat Mr Huhne said he had been flooded with calls from “distraught” passengers who fear they will be cut off and called for new laws to allow the local authorities to regulate bus companies.

He added: “I think Bluestar’s behaviour has been appalling. It is clear they don’t have the passengers’ interests at heart and are only interested in running this smaller company out of town. It is aggressive, uncompetitive and just not on.”

Black Velvet boss Phil Stockley accused his rival of “bully-boy tactics”.

He said: “Bluestar is using its muscle to force us out and it’s the passengers who suffer. However, if they hoped they would wipe us off the face of the Earth they have failed.”

He vowed the company would continue fighting to establish its place in the industry and put extra resources into its busy C1 and C2 services that connect Eastleigh, Velmore, Hiltingbury, Valley Park and Chandler’s Ford.

Bluestar boss Andrew Wickham said: “To accuse us of being aggressive is just nonsense.

All our decisions are made from a business point of view. We do not get emotional.

“We experimented with the routes but the simple truth is we had to stop it because there weren’t enough customers and those there were used concessionary passes.

“It didn’t work out for them, it didn’t work out for us – that’s all there is to it. Claims of bullying are simply untrue.”

Both companies are based in Eastleigh but are run on a different scale.

Bluestar, owned by the national public transport giant Go-Ahead, employs 150 staff, has 25 main routes, runs 67 buses per day and has been on Hampshire’s roads since the 1920s. Black Velvet has 14 staff, ten routes and set up shop less than 18 months ago.

Bluestar will continue to run services between Southampton and Fair Oak which stop at Eastleigh.