Our battle bus will be taking to the roads of Huddersfield and Calderdale TODAY to get over the message loud and clear: Save A&E at Huddersfield Royal Infirmary.
The double-decker will be impossible to miss as it’s all white and covered in Save Our A&E logo.
The Examiner Battle Bus route
8am: Leave Examiner HQ
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Our Battle Bus will leave the Examiner offices in Bradley, with staff and campaigners on board, at 8am.
8.45am — Calderdale Royal Infirmary
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To highlight the traffic problems in getting to CRH should HRI's A&E close, we're taking on the Elland bypass in rush hour — give us a wave if you see us!
9.30am — Return to Examiner HQ
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We'll return to Bradley before beginning our route through the town centre.
9.45am — Broadlea House - offices of the CCG
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To make sure the CCH takes notice, we're going to pull up outside its offices!
10am — PPG Canalside
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We'll be calling at the Huddersfield Town training ground where Town players and staff will show their support
11.30am — University of Huddersfield
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We're stopping at the University of Huddersfield too — students, make your voices heard!
12pm — St George's Square
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We'll be stopping at St George's Square over lunchtime — pay us a visit!
2pm — Holme Moss
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The closure of HRI's A&E could be disastrous for communities at the far side of Huddersfield, who face a long journey to Halifax. We're going to Holme Moss — the furthest point from CRH — to take a stand.
3pm — Slaithwaite Health Centre
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Slaithwaite campaigners are fighting for their GP's surgery, so we thought we'd lend a hand — our battle bus will be there around 3pm.
4pm — Huddersfield Royal Infirmary
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To avoid disrupting traffic to the hospital or preventing emergency vehicles from getting through, we're stopping over the road at the Nightingale pub.
Our final stop of the day is one of the most important — Huddersfield Royal Infirmary.
Our first journey tomorrow between 8am and 9am will see us face the horrendous tailbacks down Calderdale Way from Ainley Top through to Calderdale Royal Hospital.
Then we’ll be back in Huddersfield to drop in on Town’s training session before heading off to Huddersfield University to garner the support from students. With more than 25,000 students now in town losing A&E to Halifax is a major issue for them as they will have to make the longer journey to Halifax, often on public transport.
Then between around 12.30pm and 1.30pm we’ll be in St George’s Square where people will have the chance to meet us and sign the petition which already has strong support.
In the afternoon we’ll be off through Holmfirth and up to Holme Moss to the furthest outreach on our patch before heading back via Slaithwaite to Huddersfield Royal Infirmary and will be parked in front of the Nightingale pub at around 3.30pm.
And the bus will be back on the road on Wednesday so if you spot it make sure you show your support by honking your car horns or giving us a wave.
There will be reports and video from the bus throughout both days so you can follow its progress and what’s happening on our website, Facebook, Twitter and also in paper.
Examiner editor Roy Wright (top right) said: “Our journeys will show the vast area the care at Huddersfield Royal Infirmary now covers and the problems people face getting to Calderdale if the A&E at HRI was closed and moved there.
Watch: Roy Wright talks about our Battle Bus
“The bus will raise the profile of what we are doing alongside members of the #HandsOffHRI campaign and will also be a chance for people to sign the petition against the closure plan there and then.
“But don’t forget this is part of a far bigger scheme that will also see HRI which now has 400 beds demolished and replaced with a far smaller one with only 120 beds. Now is the time for action as the consultation starts and we hope that the bus shows that our actions are as bold as our words!”
On board the bus will be Examiner reporters and a photographer along with leading members of the #HandsOffHRI campaign which began as Facebook group Let’s Save Huddersfield A&E and now has almost 47,000 followers.
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The plan put forward by Greater Huddersfield and Calderdale Clinical Commissioning Groups is called Right Care Right Time Right Place and would see the current Huddersfield Royal Infirmary demolished and replaced by a smaller hospital with an ‘urgent care centre’ but, crucially, without full emergency care services.
Emergency care services will be transferred to Calderdale Royal Hospital which will be expanded to focus on serious and life-threatening cases.
