Passengers slam state of C48 buses
Regular technical issues on route
Stranded passengers and broken windscreen wipers are just some of the issues raised to councillors over a bus service to Kinbuck.
The Stirling Council-subsidised C48 route takes in Kinbuck, Dunblane, Bridge of Allan, Cornton and Stirling before finishing in Bannockburn, and was taken on by First Group last summer.
A petition had originally asked for the service to be retained but after council officers confirmed it would run until the contract expires in August 2020, petitioners were then given the opportunity to address Stirling Council’s environment committee on Thursday about the wider issues around the quality of service.
Kinbuck resident Alexandra Ullathorne, who organised the petition, said on the previous Saturday two buses had broken down on the route, one of which was 17-years-old, leaving her and another passenger stranded.
She spoke of another occasion when 12 people were left standing at Stirling bus station and an old replacement bus only turned up once they complained.
“It is very worrying that some of these buses are in such a poor condition,” she added. “Any bus is preferable to no bus, but surely we are entitled to reliable and wellmaintained vehicles?
“We regularly have no heating on the buses, and there have been instances of them having no reverse gear, tickets not being issued because they have run out of paper roll, and as recently as two weeks ago a bus arrived in the rain with one windscreen wiper working.
“The driver only got it to work by hitting the dashboard.
“Schoolchildren were throwing bangers on the bus one day and I had to remonstrate with them. Is that not the driver’s job?”
Ms Ullathorne said a better quality service would encourage more people to use it, including commuters who currently leave their cars parked at Dunblane railway station and people who wanted to attend events at Kinbuck Community Hall. She said some people started their bus journey from Kinbuck to Dunblane two hours early if they had a GP appointment because they were so worried they would miss it.
The previous operators of the service, she added, had been “excellent” and if there was a problem would immediately sent a repair vehicle along with a replacement bus, but that trying to communicate with First “hadn’t been easy at all”.
No one from First attended the meeting but council officials said company representatives indicated in recent negotiations that newer vehicles had been secured and may be introduced at the beginning of March. Ticket machines were also being replaced across Scotland which would also give passengers the opportunity to use contactless payment.
Vice convener Councillor Danny Gibson said: “We put council tax payers’ money into this the service based on an expectation of standard and if we don’t get it you’d better believe we want to know about it.”
Officers were asked to continue to discuss the issues with First and bring a report back to the next committee meeting in April when First would be asked to ensure someone from the company was in attendance.
Green councillor Alasdair Tollemache said: “Many residents have complained about the standard of the C48 bus service in my ward. We should prioritise this transport link and help make our communities connected. I trust the residents will see quick improvements in this service as the service has been frankly unacceptable.”
Tory councillor Alastair Majury said: “When the issue comes back to the committee in three months’ time, I would expect to see clear evidence that the reliability of the service has improved and would want to see First Bus represented; that would help progress the problems.”
As revealed in last Friday’s Observer, First bosses are asking for a change to the running of the C48 service claiming the timetable can’t be met.
First managing director Andrew Jarvis said: “All customers of this service should be able to rely on the C48 timetable, and I am sorry this has not always been the case.”