Stagecoach East Scotland

[computerSaysNo]

According to this fleet list, Glenrothes presently have:
ADL Enviro400s 19170/71/82/85/90/92/213/21/25/309-316/894-899
ADL Enviro200 MMCs 26007-010
ADL Enviro300s 27126/27/29-40
Optare Solos 47251/57/367
Optare Solo SRs 47812/67-69/75/76
Volvo B13RT Plaxton Elites 54106/09-13/38-45
Volvo B11RT Plaxton Elites 54331-33/56-59/61/501
Please note any of this information may be incorrect; I'm just going off of that and any of what bustimes.org suggests can be incorrect!

Thanks. I couldn't see any garages listed on bustimes but I've just discovered that they do show in desktop mode (not in mobile mode).

 

[Morayshire]

Service 39 in Perthshire has been making the news in the Dundee Courier yet again.

Stagecoach boss will hold meeting...

Article is behind a paywall of sorts but the text reads as follows:

Councillor Angus Forbes will meet with the company's operations manager to discuss issues with the 39 service in the Carse of Gowrie.
By Sean O'Neil
July 30 2024, 5:59am

Stagecoach bosses have agreed to meet with a Perthshire councillor to address ongoing issues with a beleaguered bus service in the Carse of Gowrie.

Councillor Angus Forbes will meet with the bus company’s north east operations manager, David Frenz, on Wednesday to discuss the 39 bus route.
The running of the service, which was introduced in May to replace the axed 16 and X7 routes, has been met with widespread criticism due to cancellations and delays.

Conservative councillor for the area, Mr Forbes, has been compiling a list of complaints for over a month regarding the service.
He told The Courier: “I’m grateful for the opportunity to meet them and happy to work with them to relay the experiences my constituents are facing.
“This is not a complaint about the changes in service, this is about the unreliability of the service that’s there.
“When you keep getting the same complaints then there’s something behind them.”

‘Service should begin in Dundee’​

One suggestion Mr Forbes will be making is a change to the route of the 39 which currently starts in Arbroath and runs the whole way through to Perth.
He wants to see the service begin in Dundee so it wouldn’t be affected by roadworks in Angus.

He will also ask Stagecoach to ensure the real-time information boards displayed at bus stops and on the information given through the app are accurate, with concerns that these often don’t match up.

Concerns over Stagecoach’s running of services have been mounting since they first threatened to axe a swathe of routes in Perthshire earlier this month.

Raft of changes in Perthshire and Fife​

A campaign led by The Courier, residents and politicians pushed back on the worst of those cuts but the new reduced service has failed to meet expectation.
The bus company is also introducing a raft of cuts in Fife, removing the Glenrothes to Perth route in the process.
As highlighted last week by The Courier, these wide-ranging changes are being made while Scotland doesn’t have a dedicated transport watchdog.
The Traffic Commissioner for Scotland role has been vacant since May with the UK Government yet to appoint someone to the £113,862 a year position.
Stagecoach has been approached for comment.

 

[FlybeDash8Q400]

Service 39 in Perthshire has been making the news in the Dundee Courier yet again.

So, correct me if I’m wrong. He wants the service split again. Which if I’m not mistaken will cost more money due to the overlap in Dundee? More resources = more subsidy. Any Arbroath route would need to run to at least Ninewells while the Perth route would need to run to Dundee City Centre.

Seems like this is a classic rant from someone who hasn’t really got a clue what they’re talking about.

 

[GusB]

Lol what a crybaby this Angus is, why is any of his business what Stagecoach do?? Stagecoach can do what they want and he’s gonna have to put up with it

It's the business of any elected official to represent the views of the people who voted for them, whether that be at MP, MSP or Councillor level. If they receive enough letters of complaint from their constituents, they're quite within their rights to contact local companies and put forward those views.

Whether or not those views are justified is up for debate, but to suggest that it isn't "any of his business what Stagecoach do" and "Stagecoach can do what they want" is to completely ignore the views of the local population. There may be legitimate operational reasons for a bus company to structure services in a particular way, but it should be transparent about its intentions and it should take into account the views of the people that any service changes may affect.

How would you feel if Stagecoach slashed your local route in Inverness without any regard for the views of the people that the route served?

 

[overthewater]

It should be put into context there was a planned road closure that meant which would have seen a shuttle bus however only at add odd times, but that was the council fault for this mess but it seems there have given up.

Road Closure - Grange, Carse of Gowrie (CANCELLED) - Perth & Kinross Council

From Monday, 29 July 2024 for two weeks the C484 at Grange, will be closed for footway construction works (CANCELLED)

www.pkc.gov.uk

From Monday, 29 July 2024 for two weeks the C484 at Grange, will be closed for footway construction works (CANCELLED)
Local bus service 39/39B will not serve Grange and will instead divert between Errol and Inchture via the A90/Errol Station Road in both directions. A limited shuttle service between Grange/Errol will be operated by Taybank Taxis for the duration of the works allowing residents to access local bus service 39/39B as

 

[CSB0241]

Has anyone been on the new X22 yet? I would imagine passenger numbers being quite high on either end of the route, just maybe not on the whole route.

 

[roadierway77]

Has anyone been on the new X22 yet? I would imagine passenger numbers being quite high on either end of the route, just maybe not on the whole route.

I took a journey on it on Monday and it was very quiet, there were only eight other passengers in total, though this was only its second day of service. Most of the passengers used the service between Stirling and Alloa, with the rest travelling from Stirling or Alloa over to Dunfermline. One passenger who travelled from Alloa to Dunfermline seemed quite pleased with the speed of the service compared to the 8A. The Dunfermline Press have now published an article on the X22 and once word spreads I'm sure passenger numbers will pick up - I've noticed the physical timetables at all of the bus stops have been updated to show the service. Other services tend to be popular on the sections at either end (Stirling to Alloa and Oakley to Dunfermline), the question is how many through passengers the service will carry. Let's hope Stagecoach actually bother to promote the service as well...

 

[overthewater]

I took a journey on it on Monday and it was very quiet, there were only eight other passengers in total, though this was only its second day of service. Most of the passengers used the service between Stirling and Alloa, with the rest travelling from Stirling or Alloa over to Dunfermline. One passenger who travelled from Alloa to Dunfermline seemed quite pleased with the speed of the service compared to the 8A. The Dunfermline Press have now published an article on the X22 and once word spreads I'm sure passenger numbers will pick up - I've noticed the physical timetables at all of the bus stops have been updated to show the service. Other services tend to be popular on the sections at either end (Stirling to Alloa and Oakley to Dunfermline), the question is how many through passengers the service will carry. Let's hope Stagecoach actually bother to promote the service as well...

It might pick up a bit more when Alloa College goes back in Mid August and when Stirling Uni goes back in mid September. Remember it was the MSP saying students wanted this service that got it back on. If they don't appear the service will get cut.

 

[CSB0241]

I took a journey on it on Monday and it was very quiet, there were only eight other passengers in total.

Can’t say I’m surprised. It’s essentially just a quicker alternative to the 4 to the East & Midland Bluebird 51 to the west. Oh well, we’ll see how busy it is in the next couple months

I've noticed the physical timetables at all of the bus stops have been updated to show the service.

Whereabouts did you find these timetables? Were they stocked at Dunfermline?

 

[LothianBusesPh]

Whereabouts did you find these timetables? Were they stocked at Dunfermline?

The bus stop information. Timetables that you find at the shelters not handheld leaflets.

 

[roadierway77]

It might pick up a bit more when Alloa College goes back in Mid August and when Stirling Uni goes back in mid September. Remember it was the MSP saying students wanted this service that got it back on. If they don't appear the service will get cut.

Yes I imagine it will. I know someone who lives in Blairhall and begins a course at Stirling Uni in September - the X22 will be ideal for them. I'll have to take another journey on the service soon to see if passenger numbers have picked up.

Whereabouts did you find these timetables? Were they stocked at Dunfermline?

Apologies, I meant the timetable boards at bus stops. They all appear to have been updated which is good to see.

 

[FlybeDash8Q400]

Yes I imagine it will. I know someone who lives in Blairhall and begins a course at Stirling Uni in September - the X22 will be ideal for them. I'll have to take another journey on the service soon to see if passenger numbers have picked up.

I think it might be the sort of service that struggles outside of Uni times. It has to build up a decent leisure market if it’s going to last.

 

[CSB0241]

The bus stop information. Timetables that you find at the shelters not handheld leaflets.

Apologies, I meant the timetable boards at bus stops. They all appear to have been updated which is good to see.

Ah, my mistake. Do we know if Stagecoach are going to make paper timetables for the X22? I think if they were, they’d most likely be stocked at Stirling Bus Station, but you can sometimes grab Dunfermline City guides at Ferrytoll & Halbeath so they’re also a potential option. I wondered about Springkerse Park & Ride since the X22 will at least go past it, but I’ve never been inside it so I don’t know if there’s a timetable rack.

 

[route101]

Ah, my mistake. Do we know if Stagecoach are going to make paper timetables for the X22? I think if they were, they’d most likely be stocked at Stirling Bus Station, but you can sometimes grab Dunfermline City guides at Ferrytoll & Halbeath so they’re also a potential option. I wondered about Springkerse Park & Ride since the X22 will at least go past it, but I’ve never been inside it so I don’t know if there’s a timetable rack.

Stagecoach are hit and miss for timetables. Some local routes will get a paper timetable yet the Fife Express routes I haven't seen a paper timetable for them.

 

[overthewater]

Ah, my mistake. Do we know if Stagecoach are going to make paper timetables for the X22? I think if they were, they’d most likely be stocked at Stirling Bus Station, but you can sometimes grab Dunfermline City guides at Ferrytoll & Halbeath so they’re also a potential option. I wondered about Springkerse Park & Ride since the X22 will at least go past it, but I’ve never been inside it so I don’t know if there’s a timetable rack.

X22 has been printed and were available since Monday, from Stirling and Dunfermline bus stances

Stagecoach are hit and miss for timetables. Some local routes will get a paper timetable yet the Fife Express routes I haven't seen a paper timetable for them.

Stagecoach East Scotland has printed timetables for 99% of it's routes. The only Stagecoach company in Scotland to do so. The Edinburgh guide just like Forfar guide are late coming back from the printers.

 

[CSB0241]

Stagecoach are hit and miss for timetables. Some local routes will get a paper timetable yet the Fife Express routes I haven't seen a paper timetable for them.

I found updated X51 leaflets at Ferrytoll on Wednesday, but that’s it thus far.

 

[CSB0241]

X22 has been printed and were available since Monday, from Stirling and Dunfermline bus stances

Really? I didn’t realise they had timetable racks at Dunfermline. Are they just bundled with the other miscellaneous leaflets?

 

[computerSaysNo]

Sorry about this but I'm going to have to ask for advice. What's happening with the X22 today? Turned up to Stirling to find the 1730 was delayed until 1745; fine. 1745 came and went, discover the 1745 was cancelled between Stirling and Alloa. That's fine, I can wait for the 1830 which was then predicted at about 1850. I've just checked it again just now and it's delayed until 1920?
Can anyone tell me whether this is still likely to run from Stirling or is it likely to be started forward from Alloa again? It's the last bus to Dunfermline so I'd rather still get it if possible.

 

[overthewater]

It seems there was a accident on the A907 around Manor Powis so the buses were diverted which resulted in them running late.

 

[computerSaysNo]

It seems there was a accident on the A907 around Manor Powis so the buses were diverted which resulted in them running late.

Thanks. This is the sort of information that it would be helpful having on their website.

 

[Siemens Trains]

Thanks. This is the sort of information that it would be helpful having on their website.

The Fife branch of Stagecoach seem quite good at putting updates on Twitter (X) when services suffer breakdowns or late running. I don't really follow the channel closely and don't know if they post much outside office hours, but to me there appear to be a lot of messages when I casually scroll through. For example there was an M8 accident eastbound between Claylands and Hermiston Gait the other day and Stagecoach tweeted updates on affected/diverted X51, AB1 and 747 journeys.

 

[Ohnolookwho]

Stagecoach are hit and miss for timetables. Some local routes will get a paper timetable yet the Fife Express routes I haven't seen a paper timetable for them.

Leven Bus Station tends to have paper timetables for the X58/60 and X24/27, whether they've been re-stocked yet with the X61 and X60A and new times for the other routes I've not checked yet.

 

[RomeoCharlie71]

The first of the new Optare Solo SRs has arrived at Arbroath for pre-delivery inspection today

 

[AndrewTaylor95]

The first of the new Optare Solo SRs has arrived at Arbroath for pre-delivery inspection today

Who's getting them?

 

[Dfatcontroller]

Who's getting them?

Perth (4)
Blairgowrie (3)
Glenrothes (2)