Open top moves to the coast 02 May 2016
Stagecoach East Scotland has announced that the St Andrews Open Top Tour will not operate this year.
The announcement today (Monday 2nd May 2016) follows a review of last summer's operation which saw limited demand for the St Andrews Open Top Tour.
Although the open top will not run around the city, the same bus will instead be found on the company's Fife Coastliner 95 route, connecting St Andrews with Kingsbarns, Crail, Anstruther, Pittenweem, St Monans, Elie, Upper Largo, Lower Largo and Leven.
The popular vehicle will join the existing fleet of distinctive branded double deck vehicles already on the route which runs hourly, every day of the week. Open top journeys will be advertised in a new timetable guide, although may be substituted for a standard double deck bus when required.
For a number of years the Open Top Tour bus has taken tourists around St Andrew’s many attractions with local driver Mike Reid BEM providing commentary and a friendly welcome. Over recent years there has been a noticeable change in demand with less tourists making use of the dedicated tour while at the same time an increased interest in the many tourist attractions along the coast.
Andrew Jarvis, Managing Director, Stagecoach East Scotland said: “Whilst we are disappointed that the reduced passenger usage means it is no longer viable to operate the St Andrews Open Top Tour, we are pleased to continue the tradition of operating our open top bus in St Andrews and extending it to the many tourist attractions and scenic locations in the East Neuk. We hope that this will appeal to both tourists and locals alike and encourage everyone to visit more of the great destinations that Fife offers.”
Details of the new open top bus journeys on route 95 will be available in due course.
