Dear EBUG member,
Welcome to the latest EBUG Bulletin.
- Our AGM took place on 6 June. After the business, the main event was a discussion with Professor David Begg; a full report is here. There are now 8 members on our Committee leaving three vacancies. We are particularly keen to attract younger people to join, but members who don’t consider themselves young are of course also welcome. Let us know if you are interested.
- The General Election then took over the headlines. As almost all bus-related matters are devolved, the direct consequences in Scotland are limited, but of course the UK-wide context is important.
- Meanwhile, having been elected MP for Edinburgh South West, Scott Arthur will stand down – probably after the summer – as a Councillor and Convenor of Transport and Environment at the City of Edinburgh Council. Technically, Edinburgh’s Transport Convenor just chairs meetings of the Committee, but of course much more happens behind the scenes. Who has the role is therefore important, and we will write an open letter to the new Convenor in due course.
Scott Arthur was a very active Convenor. Apart from addressing the 2023 EBUG AGM, he steered the city away from the worst of the threats to its buses, restored a degree of balance to the activities of the relevant departments, and put buses back at the centre of transport planning. Under his Convenorship, the Council rounded off a multitude of policies and plans, leaving the rest of this Council term to focus on delivery.
While Scott helped to root out some of the more fanciful ideas within the Council, we must remain vigilant. We hope the next Convenor will progress with his legacy.
- There were a few other changes to membership of the Transport and Environment Committee before it went into summer recess. It is now: Scott Arthur (pro tem), Danny Aston, Chas Booth, Sanne Dijkstra-Downie, Stuart Dobbin, Katrina Faccenda, Ewan Hyslop, Kevin Lang, Marie-Clair Munro, Kayleigh O’Neill, Iain Whyte.
- Work continues to iron out issues with the new on-street Real-Time Information screens, so they can start displaying real-time departures for Lothian Buses.
- New contracts for supported bus service routes continue to be finalised. Those in the west of Edinburgh (formerly the 20, 63 and 68) have now been approved; involving some reconfiguration, with Lothian Buses operating the busiest ones. The new arrangements are not universally popular, especially in Ratho. Perhaps one consequence was that bus stops were finally installed at the Gyle Centre tram stop, significantly improving tram-bus interchange for Ratho and other residents who have to change from bus to tram to get to the city centre. It took more than 8 years to complete this simple task!
- See this paper which finds that reducing public transport provision could be detrimental for population health.
- We responded to the Council’s Dalry – Living Well Locally consultation pointing out how the scheme could be improved for bus users; an example of remaining vigilant as mentioned above.
- In other news: as in previous years, Lothian Buses will be taking part in Doors Open Day on 28 September by showcasing their Marine Depot in Seafield; details here.