Tag: bus services

Lothian announces timetable changes due to staff shortages

On Sunday 24 July, we will introduce a short notice timetable change to some of our services on the Lothian network.

With recruitment issues across our industry still causing major resourcing issues for our business, we have taken the decision to introduce these measures to ensure that we can operate our services as advertised for our customers.

This change will see some minor timetable changes and alterations to frequencies on some of our services. There will be bus stop changes to Lothian Country.

There will be no changes to EastCoastbuses, Airport or Nightbus services.

Details of the service change and links to timetables can be found below.

If you need any assistance, please reach out on our social media channels – Twitter, Facebook and Instagram – or phone bus information on 0131 555 6363. 

Lothian Buses

Lothiancountry

Lothian: Changes to service levels from 6th – 22nd January

Saturday service to operate on Lothian and Lothian Country

Throughout the festive period, like many other organisations, we have continued to feel the impact of the Omicron strain of Covid-19 with self-isolation and rising sickness levels amongst our colleagues placing considerable pressure on our ability to deliver our services to the levels our customers would expect.

To ensure the stability and reliability of our network, we have taken the decision to operate a Saturday service with enhanced school journeys across all Lothian and Lothian Country services from 6 January until 22 January.

During this time, we will the situation under review and where appropriate we will update customers as soon as possible.

East Coast Buses will return to a normal timetable from 5 January.

We will, however, operate the school services which would ordinarily run on weekdays on Services 11, 42, 44, 45 and 400. 

Timetables for Services 42 and 45 can be found here.

We sincerely apologise for any inconvenience this may cause and would like to thank all of our customers for their patience and understanding as we endeavour to cope with circumstances outwith our control.

Once again, we are incredibly grateful to the teams across our business who have continued to work around the clock to deliver for our customers during these uncertain times maintaining vital links across Edinburgh and the Lothians – their patience and understanding is greatly appreciated.

If you are planning a journey on our services, we ask that you continue to help us to keep our colleagues and fellow customers safe by following the latest Scottish Government guidance which can be found on our Safe Travel page. 

This includes the wearing of a face covering over your nose and mouth for the duration of your journey unless exempt, and leaving windows open to increase ventilation.

Please allow more time for your travel.

If you need further assistance, please connect with us on:

Twitter, Facebook and Instagram 

or contact bus information by phoning 0871 200 22 33.

Lothian announces changes to festive bus services

In light of the Scottish Government announcement regarding large scale events and the cancellation of Edinburgh’s Hogmanay, Lothian, Lothian Country and East Coast Buses will be making some changes to our planned routes and timetables for the 30, 31 December and 1 January.

On Thursday 30 December, we will be operating a Saturday service. All diversions for the Torchlight procession have now been cancelled and bus services will operate normal routes.

On Friday 31 December, we will operate a Saturday service, finishing earlier than normal with last journeys through the city centre at approximately 2130.

On the morning of 1 January 2022, we will no longer be operating our special Hogmanay Night Service. We understand that some customers may be disappointed, however with the cancellation of the Edinburgh’s Hogmanay Street party and the latest advice from the Scottish Government, we do not anticipate sufficient demand for these night services.

As we highlighted this week, we are also continuing to be impacted by the pandemic in regards to team resource which is placing considerable pressure on our operations and therefore it is vital we continue to focus on providing critical links across Edinburgh and the Lothians.

Customers are reminded to allow extra time for their journeys and to plan before they travel through our website or our app. Updated data can be found from the 29 December on the Traveline Scotland website.

Our updated Christmas and New Year timetable is available here. You can also read more about our festive timetables here.

Thanks to all of our customers for their patience and understanding, and a massive thank you to all of our colleagues who continue to react and adapt to this ever-changing fluid situation.

Wishing you all a great Christmas and New Year.

National Express increases services to meet holiday demand

National Express will be running extra coach services on its UK-wide network in the run up to Christmas to ensure people can get home safely during the festive season (18 December 2020 – 4 January 2021).

The UK’s largest coach operator will be increasing the frequency of over 35 routes, introducing 13 new direct services and adding more locations to its timetable – starting from 18 December and running every day, including Christmas Day and Boxing Day. 

Supported by the Department for Transport, they will initially be doubling the mileage of the network, making nearly 250,000 seats available over the festive period*; and will further increase the number in response to demand – all with covid-secure measures in place.

Tickets are on sale now with more availability being released as soon as possible. Customers are being advised to plan their journey and book in advance as demand has been strong.

Chris Hardy, managing director of National Express Coach: “Trains won’t be running on Christmas Day and there are limited services on others, plus the planned engineering works on the railways.

“We’re happy to step up to help the UK public get home safely this Christmas, when it’s more important than ever. 

“This is also good news for the network of local coach companies who operate services on our behalf, at the end of what has been a challenging year.”

Increased frequency routes:
Bristol<>LondonSouth Coast<>HeathrowManchester <>London
Birmingham<>ManchesterEast Mids<>HeathrowSheffield <>London
Cardiff<>LondonBath<>LondonHalifax <>London
Birmingham<>LondonAberystwyth<>LondonLeeds <>London
London<>DoverNorth-West<>LondonThanet<>London
Brighton<>LondonLeicester<>LondonBirmingham<>Heathrow
Southampton<>LondonGloucester<>LondonBirmingham<>Bradford
Bournemouth<>LondonNottingham<>LondonSouth Wales<>Heathrow
Bristol<>BirminghamYorkshire<>LondonLiverpool<>London
Coventry<>LondonNorwich <>LondonBirmingham<>Nottingham
Nottingham<>BradfordPlymouth <>LondonSwansea <>London
Birmingham<>LeicesterPortsmouth<>LondonNorth Devon<>London
Haverford West<>London  
New direct services:
Tyneside<>LondonTeeside<>LondonHull<>London
Edinburgh<>LondonGlasgow<>LondonLondon<>York (via Leeds)
South Wales<>BirminghamCambridge<>LondonBirmingham<>Hull
Cornwall<>LondonLeeds<>ManchesterLeed<>Manchester<>Liverpool
East Mids<>West Yorkshire  
New locations on festive timetable:
HullPeterboroughCambridge
ChesterSunderlandNewquay
PenzanceFalmouthLincoln
SwindonWeston-super-MareTruro

All National Express coaches have significant covid-secure measures in place including enhanced cleaning, reduced capacity, wearing of face coverings, temperature screening and additional air conditioning filters.

Anyone who has tested positive for Covid-19 so is unable to travel, can request a full refund or amend their ticket. Passengers who no longer wish to or are unable to travel as planned will also be eligible for a free ticket amendment*.

Changes to Lothian bus services from Sunday

Lothian Buses will introduce an update to its critical services network from Sunday 21 June to help keep key workers across Edinburgh and the Lothians moving during this time.

Tram construction works in Leith will also start on 20th June, meaning that our services will be unable to serve Leith Walk northbound. Services 7, 14, 16, 22, 25, 49 will be diverted via London Road and Easter Road, heading north only and Service 11 will be diverted via Annandale Street, Bellevue Road, Mcdonald Road and Broughton Road on journeys to Ocean Terminal.

Since the introduction of the Critical Services Network on Sunday 29 March, teams across Lothian have continued to analyse customer travel patterns and customer feedback to ensure the business is meeting the needs of as many key workers and essential travellers as possible.

Customers can view updated timetables and plan journeys on Lothian’s website or through the Lothian app which offers journey planning tools and real-time service updates, all integrated with Google Maps.

It can be downloaded from tfeapp.com.

Network changes include:

Services with minor timetable changes: 1, 34, 106, 124, X27

Services with revised timetables: 3, 4, 5, 8, 11, 14, 16, 19, 21, 22, 24, 25, 26, 27, 29, 30, 31, 33, 35, 37, 38, 47, 48, 49, Airlink 100, 113, 43, X18

Services with revised route and timetables: 2, 7, 41, 49, 140, X28, 400

Service 2

Route extended to operate between Hermiston Gait and The Jewel.

Service 7

Route extended to Western Harbour on Monday to Saturday daytime, evening and Sunday journeys will continue to terminate at Newhaven.

Journeys towards Western Harbour will divert via Easter Road due to Tram construction works.

Service 41

Revised timetable with the route extended to operate between Cramond and Kings’ Buildings.

Service 49

Route extended to Fort Kinnaird.  On journeys to and from The Fort, buses will no longer access the car park at Asda The Jewel and will continue along Milton Link instead.

Journeys towards Fort Kinnaird will divert via Easter Road due to Tram construction works.

EastCoastbuses 140

Route extended to operate between Musselburgh and Penicuik Town Centre on Monday to Saturdays.

Lothiancountry X28

Monday-Saturday daytime frequency increased to every 30 minutes between Bathgate and Livingston.  Short-working buses will terminate at Livingston Morrisons.

East Calder, Mid Calder and Edinburgh will continue to be served hourly.

Skylink 400

Route extended to operate from Fort Kinnaird to Gyle Centre.

The following services are not altered: 20, 44, 63, 139

The following services do not operate: 6, 10, 12, 23, 36, 42, 45, 61, 67, 200, 300, X12, X15, X25, X26, X29, X31, X33, X37, X44, X47, N3, N7, N11, N16, N22, N25, N26, N30, N31, N34, N37, N44, 104, 125, 126, 127, X5, X7, N106, N113, N124, X17, X38, X43, EX2, 275, 280, 287, N28, N43

Timetables can be downloaded below:

Lothian Buses Network – 21 June 2020

East Coast Buses Network – 21 June 2020

Lothian Country Network – 21 June 2020

Lothian to cut back bus services

Lothian has announced its intention to introduce a reduction in services across Edinburgh and the Lothians, subject to approval from the Traffic Commissioner, due to the ongoing Covid-19 situation. 

These service reductions would take effect from Monday 23rd March.  Lothian will continue to operate vital links and will keep customers up to date with the latest information as it becomes available, with a detailed update on service levels for next week issued later today. 

Nigel Serafini, Commercial Director at Lothian, said: “These are extraordinary circumstances we are operating in and teams from across our business are working tirelessly to put plans in place as to how best to deal with this fast-changing situation.

“While the priority of maintaining services is of paramount importance, as the situation develops, we now need to factor in the impact on staffing levels being experienced.

“By introducing a reduced service from Monday, we are aiming to ensure we can continue to provide vital links across the city for those who rely on our services. We would encourage customers to plan their journeys in advance using our mobile app or website and follow our social media channels for updates.”

“The Lothian app offers journey planning tools and real-time service updates, all integrated with Google Maps. Following a recent upgrade, it is also now available in 11 languages.”

It can be downloaded from tfeapp.com.

Communities call: bring back our 42!

‘We want the 42 bus service to Craigleith Retail Park restored with immediate effect’ – DTCC’s Alex Dale

42 bus

Four local Community Councils and a residents group have joined forces to call for the immediate reinstatement of a local bus service to Craigleith Retail Park.

Drylaw/Telford, Muirhouse/Salvsen, Craigleith/Blackhall and Stockbridge/Inverleith community councils, along with Easter Drylaw Residents Association, are urging Lothian Buses to bring back the 42.

Drylaw Telford CC chairman Alex Dale explained: “I have set up a CEC petition form (see below) calling for the return of bus service 42 to the retail park with immediate effect.

“The service was withdrawn by Lothian Buses at the end of last year. They said buses entering and leaving the retail park were held up because of congestion and that these delays meant the service couldn’t keep to its timetable further along the route.

“As the bus uses the section of the park owned by Sainsbury’s, I have been badgering away over the past months to try and solve the issues. In the end Sainsbury’s agreed to pay for equipment to both the buses and the traffic lights which will allow buses priority at these lights – this is now in place and Lothian Buses are at present trialling the system with the 38 bus, which still accesses the park.

“If the trial is successful Lothian Buses will look at a possibly returning the service at their Autumn timetable, but our community councils agree that the company should return the service 42 with immediate effect as part of the trial, and not wait till Autumn.”

service 42 Signature form of those individuals supporting the petition (1)

Members of the public/local businesses can also view and sign  petition by going to   www.edinburgh.gov.uk/petitions   and selecting ‘Support a Petition’.

The Closing Date is the 13 March 2015.