After a year-long battle, Teddington campaigners have lost their fight to keep the 465 bus, a decision described as "a kick in the teeth".

Last week London Buses, part of Transport for London, announced that from tomorrow, the seven-days-a-week, early to late 465 bus service, that serves Teddington residents between Fulwell and Kingston and then on to Surbiton and Dorking, will be replaced by an hourly, 7am to 7pm service that does not operate on Sundays.

The new bus will be numbered 481 and will go from West Middlesex Hospital to Kingston.

Teddington councillor Martin Elengorn, said: "This is a kick in the teeth for the people of Teddington. London Buses admits an hourly service is insufficient to attract new passengers and is certainly no use for commuters.

"And on Sundays the many elderly people on the route will have no service whatever. More resources would have improved the time keeping and hence the number of passengers on the service."

He also complained that Transport for London (TfL) has not publicised the change to passengers.

He said: "Only people who have objected to what TfL plans to do have received any notice. The general public have no idea there will be no buses on Sunday."

From this Saturday, Park Road and Sandy Lane residents will watch empty 465 buses fly past on the way from Fulwell bus garage to its new terminus at Kingston.

"If they miss a bus, rather than wait a full hour residents will now have to walk to Broad Street to catch more frequent routes to Kingston.

Leader of Keep Our 465 Alive campaign, Martin Hodges, said: "People have come to rely on it and a lot of people on that part of the road are elderly.

"The 465 was a very well used service. We do not care what the number of the bus is, but we do care about the times it comes per hour.

"Two times would be good, three times would be great."

He said residents would now try to get Mayor of London Ken Livingstone on the case.

Cllr Elengorn will ask Richmond upon Thames Council to consider taking legal action and to persuade London Buses to consider more stops for the X26 bus route along Sandy Lane.

A spokesperson for TfL said London Buses looked at the projected usage of the 465 along Sandy Lane and whether to continue half-hourly and Sunday services.

The spokesperson said: "Bounded on the west side by a park and with the railway, creating a substantial physical barrier to the east, the catchment area for a bus service along this road is simply not substantial enough to justify a more frequent service, even taking into account the new activities which will result from the Jewson development."

He said if usage for the new bus 281 bus route increases in the future, half- hourly stops may be considered.