WILTSHIRE is reliant on income from tourism. It is after all a historic and beautiful county, easily accessible from London and Bath.

You would think that the income would be valued. Not so; on the last Saturday in May, we planned to travel on the 09.05 bus from Marlborough to Avebury and then walk back along the downs.

The bus failed to appear. At the stop there was a notice saying that there would be a change of operator and timetable from the following Monday.

The next bus was 10.40. Either it came and went so quickly we failed to see it. More likely it failed to turn up. A clue was in the notice. It said the change was due to staff shortages at the current operator.

That should also have been a clue to Wiltshire Council that there might be problems on Saturday and they should warn unsuspecting passengers who would be stranded as a result.

We had to travel to Avebury via Swindon arriving three hours late, too late for the planned walk back.

This is not the first time we have experienced problems with public transport in Wiltshire and the friends with whom we stayed became quite heated and said that Wiltshire council was becoming increasingly dysfunctional.

It would be quite unfair to pick out the school leaver on unpaid work experience who is clearly in sole charge of Wiltshire’s public transport. Instead there’s Portfolio Holder for Transport, Councillor Horace Prickett. He is on every public body and committee imaginable and is currently hot under the collar over rail franchise changes at Trowbridge.

Further up the pecking order is Councillor Philip Whitehead, cabinet member for Highways and Transport. There’s not much on him, although his expenses claims were the highest of all the councillors, even exceeding those of Jane Scott, the leader (I am deliberately excluding Ms Scott from these observations as I’m told her failings have already been well-documented.

Top of the pay tree is Dr Carlton Brand, Wiltshire Council’s corporate director. Dr Brand loves all kinds of motor sport - so good for the environment. He also runs 100 miles a week. Whether that is on the spot or being chased by frustrated residents, he doesn’t say. Personally, having until recently overseen a large educational establishment, I cannot understand how he can find the time for all these extra-curricular activities. Dr Brand is paid £148,000 per year by Wiltshire Council plus expenses and there likely to be a staff car, probably a fast one. You will have gathered I have carefully studied Dr Brand’s outpourings. Your readers who are interested in who works for them might care to do the same. One clear question will arise: For the £148,000 Dr Brand receives, what does he actually do?

RICHARD GIBBONS, Raleigh Road, Richmond