Residents of West Lothian rallied together to protest over local bus service cuts they blame for leaving them "stranded".
Scores gathered outside the Civic Centre in Livingston on Tuesday April 25 in frustration after McGill's announced they were cutting their bus service. As well as removing a Sunday service, early morning and late evenings were also set for the axe as the bus operator argued insufficient people use those services.
If they go ahead, it will mean villages outside of Livingston face being cut off completely with no bus link running through from May 8. This comes as the bus service has been criticised for its unreliability due to short notice cancellations. McGill's CEO Ralph Roberts said on Tuesday to the crowd that McGill's were "not proud of the service" that is currently running.
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Residents from all around West Lothian, including Livingston, Armadale and Blackridge, stood out in anger holding signs. This came as West Lothian Council discussed a potential 'lifeline' to the 'forgotten' communities.
Heather Jones, 59, from Deans South area of Livingston, told Edinburgh Live how the bus service and cuts are 'flooring' her mental health.
She said: "We are totally stranded. I can't see my daughter. Can't get to the shops. My depression has hit the floor. I've got asthma, arthritis and other issues and now I have to walk up to the top of hill. It's okay if you're young, but I'm not. I can't get anywhere."
Mae, 70, said: "You can't get out to do your shopping because you can't take it all back. I go everyday now to get bits and bobs through the week but that walk is hard, I can't always manage it. I won't be able to see my grandchildren when the bus is cancelled on Sundays, they stop in the early evenings. I've missed 13 doctor appointments because the bus just doesn't show up. People's mental health is out the window."
Mary Keddie came to Livingston from Broxburn to the event. She told how she visits her brother in St John's Hospital every day. She relies on the bus with a walker to assist her.
She said: "I can see him every day apart from Sundays. On Monday (yesterday) I got on the 600, which usually goes to St John's, but the driver told me he was only going to Deer Park.
"We need proper transport. Even transport to get us to Livingston for messages and to see other people. You just need to look around and you can see how sick people are of it."
Meanwhile, 18-year-old Devon Weir said he is concerned about his studies. Along with his mum, Emma, he relies on buses to get them to college and work.
Devon, who studies childhood practice at West Lothian College has to get through from Armadale to Livingston. The X25 bus, that goes to Edinburgh, takes an hour. However, the student explained how if the bus doesn't show up, he has to get two buses and can take him around three hours to get home.
Under its plans, McGill's confirmed that the X25 will be renamed the 25 and will no longer serve Blackridge. Devon said: "Some people in my class will be stuck and you need 80 per cent to pass to get into the HNC."
Following the protest, The Council Executive has today agreed to award a subsidised contract LBS 10 to McGill’s Eastern Scottish to extend the 21 service to provide a connection between Blackridge and Bathgate via Armadale.
The Council Executive has also agreed a contribution to Strathclyde Partnership for Transport to reinstate a bus service linking Whitburn with the Shotts area, which will provide a connection for residents in Greenrigg.
Executive councillor for the environment and sustainability Tom Conn said: “The situation is very difficult for everyone, and this is not an issue that is limited to West Lothian. McGill’s network changes are in direct response to the ongoing challenges being experienced across Scotland’s commercial bus industry.
“I am pleased that our team are looking at finding a solution within existing financial resources to address the issues being felt by residents in the Greenrigg and Blackridge areas. The council’s strategy is to prioritise the limited funding that we do have for people that would otherwise have no travel choices. The council will also work to ensure that new subsidised contracts are progressed to ensure that the subsides public funding is amended to reflect the new commercial routes effectively.”
He added: “We will do what we can to alter our subsidised routes to better meet the revisions within the commercial routes, but that cannot not solve all the issues. McGill’s changes come at a time when the council is facing significant financial pressures due to a budget gap of over £39 million over the next five years. It would be unrealistic to suggest that the council could use public money to fund direct replacements for the cancelled commercial services.
“The work carried out by our team also confirms that even if additional funding were available, which it is not, there is simply not enough drivers to solve the issues being experienced within the commercial bus market overall.
“The council receives no Scottish Government funding to provide a local bus service. However, the council does use its own limited funding to support around 20 per cent of local bus services, to fill the gaps in the commercial bus network as best it can. Despite huge budget pressures, the council will continue to protect this funding and has not cut any bus services or funding to support bus services.
“It is clear that commercial operators simply cannot make some of their routes financially viable with current patronage numbers as they are.”
A representative for McGill's told Edinburgh Live on Tuesday: "We have a reputation around other parts of Scotland where we provide a reliable service, and we want to do that here in West Lothian. We know it's greatly under par. At the moment with the current shortage of drivers and financial situation, it simply makes it unsustainable.
""We understand how radical it is to take services off, in the evenings and on Sundays. What we want to do is build back from a strong foundation. To do this, we unfortunately need to make cuts. From May 8, we will run 100 per cent of our miles, we will run a much more reliable service to give us time to improve the pipeline of drivers coming through, and then build the services back. So this is a temporary situation - how long, is dependent on other situations."
McGill's has been contacted for further comment.
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