Edinburgh & The Lothians Council Tender Services

[A330Alex]

Notably the adjusted 13 would no longer server Lochend/Leith/New Town and the proposed Cramond - Balerno service would not serve Heriot-Watt.

 

[NorthClyde320]

You'll never guess who got the Shotts contract:

• PM0001031/120 Registered (Short notice)​

  SCOTTISH CITYLINK COACHES LTD
  Route: Springhill Road, Shotts to Whitburn Cross via Harhill
  Service number: 23
  Service type: Normal Stopping
  Effective date: 04 Dec 2023

May explain why the 902 has been rerouted to serve Heartlands, Greenrigg, Harthill and Eastfield so it can poss link to allow through travel to Livingston?

Supported services options have been uploaded to the following document: https://democracy.edinburgh.gov.uk/documents/s63284/Item 8.6 - Supported Bus Services.pdf

Suggested routes are:

Gyle - Hermiston Park & Ride via Ratho (seems like an odd one)
Chesser - Wester Hailes (Part of existing 20)
Queensferry to Gyle (Part of existing 63)
Cramond - Balerno
Gyle, Corstorphine, Clermiston (existing 68 minus Turnhouse)
Craigleith - Dumbiedykes (Route was already mentioned previously, part of the existing 13)
Portobello Circular (former 69)

As well as an option for Ratho – City Centre Direct, but the following is within the document: 'However, initial feedback from bus operators has highlighted that this service may potentially be in competition with other commercial services and there may be limited operator interest in the route.'.

Wouldn't surprise me if McGills were to bid for all of these as it would mean getting paid for operating them, but I can see Lothian and Edinburgh Coach Lines being interested. Would Ratho Coaches ever consider bidding for public service work?

 

[Stan Drews]

Wouldn't surprise me if McGills were to bid for all of these as it would mean getting paid for operating them, but I can see Lothian and Edinburgh Coach Lines being interested. Would Ratho Coaches ever consider bidding for public service work?

I would be more surprised if they didn’t bid, being the incumbent operator for quite a number of them.

 

[overthewater]

I would be more surprised if they didn’t bid, being the incumbent operator for quite a number of them.

I would be more surprised if they could actually get drivers to operate these routes, especially with the talk of a new airport route.

 

[LothianBusesPh]

I can see Lothian and Edinburgh Coach Lines being interested.

Edinburgh Coach Lines' priority is the 13 and 69. They may bid for others, though,

Notably, the adjusted 13 would no longer serves Lochend/Leith/New Town.

That was stated before the tender information came out, so not a real surprise anymore.

 

[Blindtraveler]

The omission of Turnhouse from the 68 is going to go down well, not. Ratho to city centre could work maybe if McGill's incorporated it into their new airport service and only took tender money between the park and ride and Ratho village. It could justify double deck operation then and keep it nice and fast.

 

[Tartanarmy85]

I heard that the 23 will be part of the 902.

 

[TheEastCoaster]

Supported services options have been uploaded to the following document: https://democracy.edinburgh.gov.uk/documents/s63284/Item 8.6 - Supported Bus Services.pdf

Suggested routes are:

Gyle - Hermiston Park & Ride via Ratho (seems like an odd one)
Chesser - Wester Hailes (Part of existing 20)
Queensferry to Gyle (Part of existing 63)
Cramond - Balerno
Gyle, Corstorphine, Clermiston (existing 68 minus Turnhouse)
Craigleith - Dumbiedykes (Route was already mentioned previously, part of the existing 13)
Portobello Circular (former 69)

As well as an option for Ratho – City Centre Direct, but the following is within the document: 'However, initial feedback from bus operators has highlighted that this service may potentially be in competition with other commercial services and there may be limited operator interest in the route.'.

The Gyle to Hermiston P&R one seems odd, if it was to replace the 40 then why not have it serve Gogarbank/Gogarmuir Road rather than yet another service down Dalmahoy, anyway I don't see Lothian or LCB taking this one as it would mess with the fare zones tremendously.

Hermiston (City Zone)
Ratho (CityWest Zone)
Gyle (City Zone)

Interesting that the Chesser to Wester Hailes section doesn't extend further to the Gyle, could of maybe merged with the Queensferry to Gyle route, but aw well. Could see LCB taking the Queensferry to Gyle section and Lothian covering the Chesser to Wester Hailes section?

Lothian could also do the Balerno to Cramond route as I could see that going down well with residents, but then that leaves the new 13 to Dumbiedykes, the 68 and 69! which I know ECL are interested in the 13 and 69, but who gets the 68?

 

[stevenedin]

The Gyle to Hermiston P&R one seems odd, if it was to replace the 40 then why not have it serve Gogarbank/Gogarmuir Road rather than yet another service down Dalmahoy, anyway I don't see Lothian or LCB taking this one as it would mess with the fare zones tremendously.

Hermiston (City Zone)
Ratho (CityWest Zone)
Gyle (City Zone)

Interesting that the Chesser to Wester Hailes section doesn't extend further to the Gyle, could of maybe merged with the Queensferry to Gyle route, but aw well. Could see LCB taking the Queensferry to Gyle section and Lothian covering the Chesser to Wester Hailes section?

Lothian could also do the Balerno to Cramond route as I could see that going down well with residents, but then that leaves the new 13 to Dumbiedykes, the 68 and 69! which I know ECL are interested in the 13 and 69, but who gets the 68?

Do Waverley Travel still exist? They could get the 68.

 

[gavin1985]

The Gyle to Hermiston P&R one seems odd, if it was to replace the 40 then why not have it serve Gogarbank/Gogarmuir Road rather than yet another service down Dalmahoy, anyway I don't see Lothian or LCB taking this one as it would mess with the fare zones tremendously.

Hermiston (City Zone)
Ratho (CityWest Zone)
Gyle (City Zone)

Interesting that the Chesser to Wester Hailes section doesn't extend further to the Gyle, could of maybe merged with the Queensferry to Gyle route, but aw well. Could see LCB taking the Queensferry to Gyle section and Lothian covering the Chesser to Wester Hailes section?

Lothian could also do the Balerno to Cramond route as I could see that going down well with residents, but then that leaves the new 13 to Dumbiedykes, the 68 and 69! which I know ECL are interested in the 13 and 69, but who gets the 68?

Some of the changes make sense, however I feel that some of them could merge to be a longer route. As a few seem just too short, especially compared to most other routes.

Queensferry - Gyle could be extended to say Chesser which could cover more shops and also the O2 academy.
Gyle - Corstorphine could be extended to say Craigleith, a decent cover of shops to shops and in the vicinity of the Western General
Craighleith - Dumbiedykes could be extended to cover Portobello

 

[bobdoe]

The Gyle to Hermiston P&R one seems odd, if it was to replace the 40 then why not have it serve Gogarbank/Gogarmuir Road rather than yet another service down Dalmahoy, anyway I don't see Lothian or LCB taking this one as it would mess with the fare zones tremendously.

Hermiston (City Zone)
Ratho (CityWest Zone)
Gyle (City Zone)

Interesting that the Chesser to Wester Hailes section doesn't extend further to the Gyle, could of maybe merged with the Queensferry to Gyle route, but aw well. Could see LCB taking the Queensferry to Gyle section and Lothian covering the Chesser to Wester Hailes section?

Lothian could also do the Balerno to Cramond route as I could see that going down well with residents, but then that leaves the new 13 to Dumbiedykes, the 68 and 69! which I know ECL are interested in the 13 and 69, but who gets the 68?

The roads in the Gogarmuir area are so narrow maybe the council didn't like that idea.

 

[TheEastCoaster]

Some of the changes make sense, however I feel that some of them could merge to be a longer route. As a few seem just too short, especially compared to most other routes.

Queensferry - Gyle could be extended to say Chesser which could cover more shops and also the O2 academy.
Gyle - Corstorphine could be extended to say Craigleith, a decent cover of shops to shops and in the vicinity of the Western General
Craighleith - Dumbiedykes could be extended to cover Portobello

I was thinking by merging the Queensferry to Gyle route with the Wester Hailes to Chesser route you could replace both the 20/63 no problem, however the advantage of having the routes run short is that it keeps them reliable.

Saying that I hope that LCB will be able to pick up the Queensferry to Gyle route and offer some good connections in Kirkliston with the 72.

 

[gavin1985]

I was thinking by merging the Queensferry to Gyle route with the Wester Hailes to Chesser route you could replace both the 20/63 no problem, however the advantage of having the routes run short is that it keeps them reliable.

Saying that I hope that LCB will be able to pick up the Queensferry to Gyle route and offer some good connections in Kirkliston with the 72.

To ask a daft question, how would they fare if they still got the same number of drivers for the two routes but still merged for a combined 63/20 service?

Sorry if I have worded that badly and hopefully you get what I am trying to ask haha

 

[A330Alex]

Councillors have voted to retain the existing 13 route.

https://x.com/jackrmcaldwell/status/1725210371303125098

13 BUS ROUTE RETAINED!

After residents & ward cllrs across Edin spoke up, x-party agreement broke out & crucially line 1.2 from LD amdt passed.

But CEC Bus team are right: fuel inflation's created dilemmas. However lines must be drawn for equitable mobility

 

[TheEastCoaster]

Councillors have voted to retain the existing 13 route.

https://x.com/jackrmcaldwell/status/1725210371303125098

Not to be a downer but out of curiosity, is the 13 busy between the city centre and Lochend these days? I just think that maybe the re-route would have maybe been beneficial so it's a shame they aren't going ahead with it.

 

[Bus9120UK]

Councillors have voted to retain the existing 13 route.

https://x.com/jackrmcaldwell/status/1725210371303125098

Looks like they were also considering rerouting the 13 to Dumbiedykes through Princes Street and North Bridge before this.

The amendments (page 25, Item 8.6) also mention that all concerns regarding Ratho services have been noted, and routes will be continue to be reviewed before tendering under the Dynamic Purchasing System commences. They will prioritise enhancing frequencies from hourly to half hourly and introducing Sunday service during any reviews, and introducing a Ratho to City option via the A71.

 

[TheEastCoaster]

Looks like they were also considering rerouting the 13 to Dumbiedykes through Princes Street and North Bridge.

The amendments (page 25, Item 8.6) also mention that all concerns regarding Ratho services have been noted, and routes will be continue to be reviewed before tendering under the Dynamic Purchasing System commences. They will prioritise enhancing frequencies from hourly to half hourly and introducing Sunday service during any reviews, and introducing a Ratho to City option via the A71.

So we could be looking at a service that could run from Hallcroft Park via Dalmahoy Road onto Sighthill potentially following the X27/X28 route to town but serving all stops instead?

I know it's the wrong forum so I shouldn't speculate but it makes the most sense, especially if they aren't going via Ratho Station.

 

[gavin1985]

Looks like they were also considering rerouting the 13 to Dumbiedykes through Princes Street and North Bridge before this.

The amendments (page 25, Item 8.6) also mention that all concerns regarding Ratho services have been noted, and routes will be continue to be reviewed before tendering under the Dynamic Purchasing System commences. They will prioritise enhancing frequencies from hourly to half hourly and introducing Sunday service during any reviews, and introducing a Ratho to City option via the A71.

So they still have no idea what to do with the 63 and 20? Surely if they are thinking of a Ratho to City via the A71, then they could merge both 20 and 63?
As a new Ratho service via A71 could take away the need for the 20 part of the service from Ratho.

 

[Bus9120UK]

So they still have no idea what to do with the 63 and 20? Surely if they are thinking of a Ratho to City via the A71, then they could merge both 20 and 63?
As a new Ratho service via A71 could take away the need for the 20 part of the service from Ratho.

Previously the 20 was two separate tenders: Ratho to Gyle, Hermiston Gait to Chesser. I could easily see something similar happening with an operator bidding for both and operating them as a singular route.

 

[TheEastCoaster]

a new Ratho service via A71 could take away the need for the 20 part of the service from Ratho.

The only problem is that it takes away the link between Ratho and Ratho Station, which I'm sure is very vital.

Previously the 20 was two separate tenders: Ratho to Gyle, Hermiston Gait to Chesser. I could easily see something similar happening with an operator bidding for both and operating them as a singular route.

So we could get an LCB Queensferry to Chesser?

 

[VioletEclipse]

So we could get an LCB Queensferry to Chesser?

The 63 is often fairly well used between the Gyle and Balerno in my experience, taking away that section would remove a lot of connections.

 

[TheEastCoaster]

The 63 is often fairly well used between the Gyle and Balerno in my experience, taking away that section would remove a lot of connections.

True but there is the new tender between Balerno and Cramond anyway so it's not like the link will be lost, plus anyone can connect with a 63 in the Gyle anyway.

 

[LothianBusesPh]

The 63 is often fairly well used between the Gyle and Balerno in my experience, taking away that section would remove a lot of connections.

The Cramond to Balerno service will cover this, nothing will change in that resort.

 

[TheEastCoaster]

The Cramond to Balerno service will cover this, nothing will change in that resort.

With this link in place I suppose there is no real need to extend the 47 further down towards The Gyle either

 

[stevenedin]

With this link in place I suppose there is no real need to extend the 47 further down towards The Gyle either

Unless it is extended to West Craigs.

 

[bobdoe]

So no buses will serve Turnhouse / Airport Cargo anymore?

 

[VioletEclipse]

So no buses will serve Turnhouse / Airport Cargo anymore?

I would imagine they'd put a service there fairly soon afterwards if they removed it now, there's a lot of new housing being built between West Craigs and Turnhouse.

 

[CSB0241]

The 63 is often fairly well used between the Gyle and Balerno in my experience, taking away that section would remove a lot of connections.

I’d genuinely say otherwise! I’ve done a Full Route Visual on it fairly recently & about 12 or so people were on it & all but one person got off at The Gyle, with only 3 getting on, staying about that level for the remainder of the journey

 

[cam22]

Unless it is extended to West Craigs.

The 31 is to serve West Craigs.

 

[Observer]

Do Waverley Travel still exist? They could get the 68.

Yes they still run the shuttle service at Edinburgh Park. Other operators will be able to get involved in the framework too. Ratho Coaches for example, could apply for the services too.