Tag: Lothian Buses

New Poppyscotland bus launched on Edinburgh Poppy Day

A brand new Poppyscotland bus was unveiled yesterday (Thursday 29 October) on Edinburgh Poppy Day, marking the launch of the charity’s annual campaign.

Designed in partnership with Poppyscotland, the Lothian Buses’ double deck bus features a striking poppy-themed design and will help to raise awareness of the charity’s vital work supporting veterans and their families.

Gaynor Marshall, Communications Director for Lothian Buses and Edinburgh Trams, said: “As one of the largest employers in the region, we’re incredibly proud to have many former servicemen and women among our colleagues at Lothian Buses and Edinburgh Trams. That gives our longstanding support for Poppyscotland and the Scottish Poppy Appeal a very special significance for us.

“We’re delighted to continue our partnership with Poppyscotland and play our part in raising awareness of the invaluable support it provides to veterans and their families.

“Our buses are seen across Edinburgh and the Lothians every day, so they provide a fantastic platform to share this important message.

“We hope the new design will encourage people to pause, reflect and show their support for this year’s Scottish Poppy Appeal.”

Leanne Bonner, Head of Scotland at Poppyscotland, said: “With the unveiling of this year’s wonderful Lothian Buses poppy bus, we are reminded that the sacrifices of service extend far beyond the frontline, reaching deep into our local communities.

“We are incredibly grateful to Lothian Buses for their steadfast, continued support in bringing this message to the streets of Edinburgh and the Lothians.

“Partnerships like this ensure that military families receive the recognition and support they rightfully deserve. Every donation to the Scottish Poppy Appeal goes toward providing life-changing financial aid, housing support, employment advice, and mental health services to our veteran and service community here in Scotland.”

Veterans and active servicemen and women of the armed forces will also be invited to travel for free on board Lothian Buses and Edinburgh Trams on Remembrance Sunday (8 November) and Armistice Day (11 November) this year.

Both operators employ many former service personnel, and this year they are welcoming those in uniform or with an appropriate form of identification to travel for free across the network on these two days of national remembrance.

Two minutes’ silence will also be observed on both days by the operators, with bus and tram services pausing where safe to do so as a mark of remembrance.

Edinburgh College & Mauritius partnership helps develop EV maintenance skills

Edinburgh College recently welcomed a delegation of TVET colleagues from Mauritius, made up of training staff from project lead Saint Gabriel Technical College (SGTC) and the Mauritian Institute of Training and Development (MITD), as part of a British Council-funded project helping partner organisations develop their electric bus maintenance skills, while sharing their own expertise and approaches.

The group of four personnel – SGTC’s Bruno Chellamootoo and Terry Leveque, along with the MITD’s Vijaysingh Chuttur and Khemrajsingh Rampersand – undertook an intensive three days heavy electric vehicle maintenance course, achieving a UK IMI Certificate Level 3 at the Sighthill campus.

The College’s Kieran Lydon, Curriculum Team Manager for Automotive Engineering and Alan Phillips, Automotive Lecturer led the training on specialised equipment, including the recently acquired Ford Transit EV trainer. The chassis allows for in-depth views of its inner workings, while a range of faults can be inserted to simulate real-world problems.

The group also enjoyed a visit to the College’s wider Engineering facilities at the Midlothian campus, observing workshop layouts with guidance from Fraser Wilson, Curriculum Team Manager for Engineering and Advanced Manufacturing, while lecturer Daniel Wright provided our guests with a chance to try out some virtual reality welding equipment.

The areas of Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) and STEM were also of particular interest to the delegation, with EDI Lead Nina Munday and STEM Co-ordinator for Engineering Catherine Brotherton giving presentations on how those principles are applied at Edinburgh College.

This international skills partnership, supported by funding from the British Council’s Going Global Partnerships programme, focuses on supporting trainers in Mauritius to develop their own heavy electric vehicle maintenance skills and to enhance their knowledge of working with the technology, while allowing them the opportunity to share their own methods and expertise, with a view to informing the approach moving forward.

Upon their return, the participating trainers will support the transfer of knowledge and skills within their respective institutions, helping to build sustainable local training capacity in heavy electric vehicle maintenance.

With electric bus fleets having been introduced in Mauritius, this project is contributing to its wider ambitions to modernise public transport, build local technical capacity and support the transition towards cleaner and more sustainable mobility solutions.

A highlight of the week in Edinburgh was an opportunity to visit the Lothian Buses central depot and head office at Annandale Street. Lothian Buses is the UK’s largest municipally owned bus company and is the holder of the November, 2025 UK Bus Awards ‘Top City Operator’ and Bus Operator of the Year 2026 at the UK National Transport Awards.

The group was welcomed to Lothian Buses by Dylan Dastey, Lothian Buses Engineering Director and Paul Baxter, Chief Engineer. They were shown the organisation of the maintenance facility, a number of electric vehicles and also the tracking systems employed for seeing the citywide charging status of vehicles out on operations.

Dylan Dastey of Lothian Buses said: “We were delighted to welcome delegates to Lothian and offer an insight into our Engineering function, including our highly regarded apprenticeship scheme.

“As the city’s main public transport operator, we are committed to working with key partners, sharing best practice to maintain high standards and support compliance across the sector. As new technologies emerge and evolve, sharing best practice and learning from operators and suppliers across the industry is more important than ever.”

Jon Buglass, Deputy Principal added: “It was wonderful to welcome the delegation from Mauritius, and show them first-hand the important work we are doing teaching our students how to properly maintain and service electric buses.

“The skills needed to work on electric vehicles are becoming increasingly vital as Scotland transitions towards a net-zero future, and we are proud to share our expertise with international partners who are pursuing their own green objectives.”

A cultural close to the week was an Edinburgh Bus Tours open top bus trip around the city’s key sights.

British Council Going Global Partnerships support universities, colleges and wider education stakeholders around the world to work together towards stronger, equitable, inclusive, more internationally connected higher education, science and TVET.

The partnership has also engaged with stakeholders which include the Mauritius Qualifications Authority (MQA), the National Transport Corporation (NTC), HSBC Mauritius and government representatives to support this wider development of electric vehicle maintenance skills in Mauritius.

Ocean Terminal: Public Transport Update

📣PUBLIC TRANSPORT UPDATE📣

Lothian Buses have reinstated the diversion on Ocean Drive and will not be serving the stops at Ocean Terminal.

Temporary bus stop is located near the Capital Cruise Building on Melrose Drive to the side of the centre.

This is due to a road defect on Ocean Drive that is unable to be navigated by buses.

Repair is currently indicated to be taking place next week.

Please note, our car park is open as normal

Councillors respond to Cramond public transport concerns

SHUTTLE BUS SOLUTION TO D MAINS ROUNDABOUT CLOSURE

Important update on 47 bus diversion

We wrote to you yesterday about Lothian Buses’ decision to divert the 47 bus service during the 9 week duration of the roadworks at the Davidson’s Mains roundabout.

The consequence of the change, due to start from Monday, is that the 47 will run along Queensferry Road to the terminus at Cammo without serving Cramond Road South and Whitehouse Road.

As we explained yesterday, it was completely unacceptable to us for Cramond to be left without a key bus link for so long.

We want to thank the literally hundreds of our constituents who have emailed us about this. Please accept our apologies for the fact we’ve not been able to reply to everyone.

We hope you’ll understand our focus over the last 24 hours has been in finding a solution for our constituents who rely on the 47. As councillors, we felt our job was to keep up the pressure on both Lothian Buses and Edinburgh Council officers to get action.

Our strong preference was for Lothian to simply route the 47 right at the Barnton junction and into Whitehouse Road for a loop around Cramond. This would replicate the old route of the service. We pressed Lothian to consider this.

However, Lothian have refused to adopt this temporary route because of their concerns over the impact it could have on the timings of the service as a whole.

Nevertheless, we have now managed to secure an important new alternative service which we hope will help –

We’ve had it confirmed tonight that that a free to use shuttle bus will be available for Cramond residents. This will operate between Cramond and Cammo. People can then connect to the 47 bus for journeys along Queensferry Road and onward.

This will be up and running by the middle of next week – ahead of the schools returning from their Easter break. We will share more specific details of when we have them.

We know this shuttle service is far from ideal – however, it will mean people can still get public transport to connect to the 47 bus service when they need it.

We also want to make sure the work in Davidson’s Mains is completed as quickly as possible so things return to normal just as soon as they can.

We will of course keep you informed as we get more information.

With best wishes,

Cllr Kevin Lang

Cllr Louise Young

Cllr Lewis Younie

Lib Dem councillors for Cramond and Barnton

Lothian Buses: Holiday services

See at a glance what service levels will be in operation over the festive period

No matter the reason for travelling by bus this festive period – visiting friends and family, commuting to and from work, attending Christmas parties or work nights out – Lothian is here to make your journey easy, affordable and comfortable.

We’ve pulled together all the information you could possibly need this Christmas for travel across Edinburgh and the Lothians, including festive timetables, TravelHub opening hours, journey planning tools, Lothian merchandise (ideal for stocking fillers!) and last but not least… our very special Christmas Advertisement for 2025, created in partnership with our Charity of Choice, Age Scotland!

LOTHIAN-XMAS-2025Download

#MerryChristmasFromLothian

New video highlighting the impact of Bonfire Night criminality released

A new film highlighting the significant impact of violence and disorder involving fireworks on communities, services and emergency workers has been shared by Police Scotland.

The film features interviews with a mother, whose son was injured, a bus driver whose bus was struck by a brick, a police officer who underlines the impact of blue light-personnel and a community representative who calls on people to take pride in their local area.

Police Scotland, Lothian Buses, and Places for People, a social enterprise organisation, contributed to the package as part of work to reduce disorder and criminality over the Bonfire Night period.

In 2024, despite a positive reduction in serious disorder offences, police officers, firefighters, bus drivers, and local communities were subject to unacceptable levels of violence between 31 October and 5 November.

As a result of the criminal investigations that followed, 61 people were charged with fireworks-related criminality across Scotland.

Inspector Scott Casey, an experienced Public Order Officer, discusses how he and his colleagues came under attack during the disorder that took place in 2023 and the feeling of being struck with fireworks, as well as seeing members of his team sustain injury.

Tony Beecher from Lothian Buses recounts a terrifying experience where his bus, which had several passengers onboard, was targeted with a brick and warned of the serious consequences that could arise if a bus was to crash after being struck.

Over the last few years, the Niddrie area has experienced significant and unacceptable levels of disorder, resulting in damage to public property and causing fear and alarm to local residents and businesses.

Cheryl Neil, Places For People’s Community Safety Area Manager for Scotland gives an overview of how those living within this region have suffered greatly and urged people to take pride in their community and help prevent it being the scene of mass disorder this year.

The video also includes a harrowing interview with Catherine, whose 11-year-old son sustained third-degree burns to his legs after he and some friends started a fire for a social media stunt.

Catherine recalls the anguish of seeing her child in extreme pain after sustaining the injuries and calls on all parents to talk to their own kids about the dangers associated with starting fires.

The full video can be viewed here: https://youtu.be/OyGxqYOKp4A

Road safety initiative launched in city centre: Stay Safe and Visible

Road users in Edinburgh are being asked to consider distance, blind spots and visibility as part of an initiative by road policing officers in the city.

Police Scotland is working with partners including Scottish Fire and Rescue Service, Lothian Buses, Edinburgh City Council and David Philp Commercials, to encourage everyone to be more aware.

A number of vehicles were on Castle Street yesterday (Thursday, 28 August), demonstrating blind spots for cyclists and pedestrians.

PC Stewart Sinclair from Police Scotland’s Road Policing Unit in Edinburgh, said: “We are encouraging everyone to think about how visible and safe they are. Many of us are unaware how much or little a driver can see because of blind spots. This event will give awareness to more vulnerable road users how to keep themselves safe on the road network.

“Visibility is very important in terms of making our roads safer and I would like everyone, including pedestrians, to think about how they are seen, especially if a street is poorly lit after dark. Visibility is very different to that of a bus, car, lorry, motorbike or bike.

“I must emphasise the need for all road users to look out for each other and give each other space. Unfortunately, when a crash happens it is often a pedestrian, cyclist or motorcyclist injured.

Willie Hamilton, Operations Director, Lothian Buses, said: “We are delighted to continue our partnership with Police Scotland and other key stakeholders to help raise awareness around cyclist visibility and potential blind spots on our roads.

“With a network of over 70 routes across Edinburgh and the Lothians, we invest heavily in our driver training programme which covers all aspects of road safety including awareness of cyclists, pedestrians and other road users.”

Scottish Fire & Rescue Service Crew Commander David Main, said: “The Scottish Fire & Rescue Service welcomes the opportunity to support this initiative and work with partners to improve the safety of all road users in the Edinburgh area.

“By working to improve awareness and encouraging everyone to think about safe distances, blind spots, visibility when on or around our roads we can make our roads safer for everyone”

Edinburgh commuters face public transport fare hikes next month

LOTHIAN BUSES AND EDINBURGH TRAMS ANNOUNCE 10% FARE INCREASE

Fares will be revised across Lothian’s group of companies – Lothian Buses, Lothian Country and East Coast Buses – from Sunday 6 April 2025.

The last fares revision took place in April 2023 and since then, operating cost pressures have increased significantly. With all fares revenue reinvested into the running of our business, introducing revised fares is required for Lothian to continue to prioritise investment in our fleet, our people, and our wider customer offering.

Lothian’s TapTapCap Pay-As-You-Go product will continue to offer discounted fares via contactless capping versus paper tickets, with the Contactless City DAY cap at £5.00 compared to the £5.50 City DAY ticket.

As part of a service change which will also take effect from Sunday 6 April, Skylink 200 will become Service 17 and Skylink 400 will become Service 18, with regular city fares applying on these routes, even for those travelling to the airport.

For more information about the service change, please see below or visit Service change from Sunday 6 April.

There will be no change to our Airlink Airport Single and Return fares.

As part of this review, there will be further harmonisation of products in East and West Lothian to continue the simplification of our ticketing portfolio.

 Product Current Fare Revised Fare Validity
 Adult Single £2.00 £2.20 Valid for one journey on a day service.
Child Single£1.00£1.10Valid for one journey on a day service.
Adult DAYTicket (renamed City DAY ticket)£5.00
£4.80 TapTapCap
£10.50 Family		£5.50
£5.00 TapTapCap
£12.00 Family		Valid for unlimited journeys on day services.
Child DAYticket
(renamed City DAY ticket)		£2.50£2.75Valid for unlimited journeys on day services.
TapTapCap – City Week Cap£22.00£24.50Maximum weekly cap for unlimited journeys on day and night services in the city and airport zones. Weekly caps run Monday – Sunday.
Adult NETWORK£12.00£12.50Unlimited journeys on day and NightBus services across our entire network, including Edinburgh Trams.
Adult Ridacard (1 Week)£22.00£24.50Unlimited journeys on day and NightBus services across our entire network, including Edinburgh Trams.
Adult Ridacard (4 Weeks)£66.00£73.00Unlimited journeys on day and NightBus services across our entire network, including Edinburgh Trams.
Adult Ridacard (Monthly DD)£62.00£68.00Unlimited journeys on day and NightBus services across our entire network, including Edinburgh Trams.
Adult Ridacard (Annual)£650.00£700.00Unlimited journeys on day and NightBus services across our entire network, including Edinburgh Trams.

Edinburgh Trams is today announcing an increase in ticket prices, in line with its sister company, Lothian Buses.

This is the first time since 2023 that fares have changed and reflects the increased operational costs faced by the operator in the last two years. Fare changes will come into effect from start of service on Sunday 6 April.

The fare changes will see the cost of an Adult Single fare rise from £2 to £2.20, and an Adult Return fare rise from £3.80 to £4.20. Day Tickets will also increase by 50p, to £5.50.

Proportional fare increases will apply to all tickets, with full details available below.

Image

a grid with details of upcoming fare changes

Lea Harrison, Managing Director at Edinburgh Trams, said: “While every effort has been made to keep fare increases to a minimum, the rise will allow us to meet our commitments to providing cost-effective and environmentally friendly travel across the city.

“We understand that fare rises are never preferred, but demands on the network and on staff have never been higher, with trams now running more frequently every day. These fare changes will allow us to continue to maintain and improve the tram network for the benefit of the customer.”

Transport and Environment Convener, Councillor Stephen Jenkinson said: “Edinburgh Trams provides an award winning and vital service to our city, with over 12 million journeys completed last year alone.

“We’ve all seen the benefits from Trams to Newhaven and it’s fair to say that the arrival of the trams has breathed a new lease of life into the north of the Capital.

“I realise that these fare increases are a difficult reality in the current economic climate. However, it’s vital that we continue to invest in and protect our tram network, whilst continuing with our bold vision for a new tram line from North-South in the future.

“Keeping Edinburgh moving is my priority and I’ll continue to work alongside Edinburgh Trams to make that happen.”

Customers can still buy discounted bundles of tickets on the et app, or pre-book some ticket types on Edinburgh Ticket, to ensure that we can still offer the best fares to our customers. 

For details on changes to Ridacard prices, you can check Lothian Buses website here.

Lothian choose Age Scotland as next charity partner

Lothian Buses is delighted to announce that Age Scotland has been chosen as its new Charity of Choice partner for the next two years following a staff vote of the company’s 2600+ strong workforce.

Age Scotland work to improve the lives of older people in Scotland. They provide a free helpline and information service, support older people’s groups, promote age and dementia-friendly communities, deliver wellbeing programmes, and campaign on behalf of older people.

The partnership, which will run until the start of 2027, will help support Age Scotland’s vision to ensure Scotland is the best place in the world to grow older and will provide the charity with an invaluable opportunity to raise awareness of its work and services across Edinburgh and the Lothians.

There will be unique marketing opportunities including the wrapping of a bus in Age Scotland messaging, and all funds raised from this partnership will contribute to Age Scotland’s community development work across Lothian’s network, including assisting the work of over sixty Age Scotland Member Groups.

Gaynor Marshall, Communications Director for Lothian, said: “We’re delighted to welcome Age Scotland as Lothian’s Charity of Choice 2025-26.

“Lothian is proud to be part of the communities we serve, and we look forward to working with the team at Age Scotland over the course of the next two years to raise awareness of the support they can offer – helping to tackle loneliness, support inclusion, and deliver better lives for older people across our operating area.”

Katherine Crawford, Chief Executive of Age Scotland, said: “Tens of thousands of older people across the Lothians experience loneliness and this wonderful partnership means we can reach many more people with the services we offer to help, and support dozens of local groups and clubs which keep older people connected.

“We’re incredibly grateful to the staff at Lothian who voted for us to be their Charity of Choice over the next two years, and I just know that our work together will have a really positive impact on the communities that Lothian serve so well.”

STORM EOWYN: BATTEN DOWN THE HATCHES AS RED ALERT DECLARED

SCOTLAND SHUTTING DOWN

The Met Office has issued a red weather warning for wind from 10am to 5pm Friday 24 January. An Amber warning is in place from 6am to 10am.

COUNCIL SERVICES:

We will publish all the latest information about Council buildings and services on this page.

Schools, nurseries and early years

All Council schools, nurseries and early years settings will be closed on Friday 24 January. Schools will communicate directly with parents.

Bin collections 

Bin collections – residents should not put their wheelie bins and boxes out for collection tomorrow. Friday collections will run over the weekend instead.

Residents should put their bins out for collection on Saturday when it is safe to do so for collection from Sunday. 

Street cleansing will not operate.

Recycling centres – any bookings for recycling centres will be rescheduled 

Special uplift services – residents who have booked a collection for tomorrow should not put the items out for collection. Appointments will be rebooked.  

Housing and homelessness

Anyone who needs to present as homeless should contact us by phone on 0131 529 7036.  

Only emergency council house repairs will take place. Non-emergency council house repairs will be cancelled and re-scheduled. 

Scaffolding will be checked and taken down if possible.  

Council buildings, services and parks

We will only run essential services on Friday 24 January.

The following buildings or parks/grounds will be closed on Friday 24 January:

  • The Registrars Office 
  • All council cemeteries, Mortonhall Crematorium, and the Mortuary
  • All museums, galleries, monuments and cultural venues (Usher Hall, Assembly Rooms, Churchill Theatre – this includes cancellation of a rehearsal and performance at the Churchill Theatre).  Building checks will be carried out before reopening.
  • Lauriston Castle grounds and Princes Street Gardens. These will also remain closed on Saturday due to extended wind warning and time needed to survey grounds.
  • Ukraine Welcome Hub at Flassches Yard.

Travel disruption

Police Scotland has issued a ‘do not travel’ notice. Police Scotland travel advice 

Lothian Buses expect significant disruption to their services and customers are advised to check the status of their service before travelling. 

Scot Rail is suspending all train services tomorrow and there will be no alternative transport available. 

For travel updates check @edintravel and @TrafficScotland on X (Twitter) as well as your travel provider.

Emergency social care service 0800 731 6969 – free phone.

NHS LOTHIAN:

EDINBURGH TRAMS:

Due to the red weather warning in place across Edinburgh tomorrow due to #StormÉowyn, Edinburgh Trams will be operating a reduced service on Friday 24 January. We will be monitoring wind speeds at key places on the track and will continue to operate in order to facilitate essential travel as long as it remains safe to do so.

Please follow @PoliceScotland guidelines and only travel if absolutely necessary.

Customers are advised to check the status of their service before travelling on Friday and Saturday, using the Bus & Tram App.

More information: https://bit.ly/3Wx6TMq

LOTHIAN BUSES

CUSTOMER INFORMATION

Service Updates

http://lothianbuses.com/service-updates/… Bus & Tram App

http://lothianbuses.com/app/