Wednesday May 10th 2023
Councillors approved an emergency motion asking for an urgent meeting with Lothian Buses to discuss service changes, including changes to the 48 and 49 service.
The meeting heard that Lothian Buses had not consulted with Midlothian Council, as is customary, before announcing the services changes. Midlothian Council is a minority shareholder in Lothian Buses.
The changes, due to be implemented from Sunday 28 May, will “have a major effect on the corridor from Rosewell through Bonnyrigg and beyond”, the motion states.
At the full Council meeting on Tuesday, councillors agreed to ask Lothian Buses to delay the service changes until after the meeting, which is also “an opportunity to put forward alternatives that will better serve our communities”.
Cllr Russell Imrie, who proposed the motion, said: “These proposed changes were made without any prior knowledge whatsoever to councillors, passengers or the general public. We need to meet with Lothian Buses as a matter of urgency.”
The motion was seconded by Council Leader Councillor Kelly Parry. The Council Leader said:
“These proposals are a ludicrous example of a desktop exercise that has gone wrong. Lothian Buses have not consulted with local people, nor have they consulted with elected members.
“I’ve had 67 emails from local people very concerned about these changes. All of them have solutions that benefit our communities. I’m urging Lothian Buses to listen to their customers and to meet with us as a council for the benefit of bus users in Midlothian who rely heavily on these services.”
According to the Lothian Bus announcement the service changes are:
Service 48
Revised route and timetable. Service 48 will be extended from Fort Kinnaird to Musselburgh Grammar School via Newcraighall and Stoneybank following the route of Service 46 described above. Coordinated with revised Service 46, there will be a bus every 15 minutes between Musselburgh and the Royal Infirmary on weekdays and Saturdays.
Service 48 will not call at QMU campus but stop just outside on Whitehill Farm Road.
Service 49
Revised route, buses will operate between Fort Kinnaird and the Royal Infirmary only. The section between Rosewell and Royal Infirmary will be replaced by new Service 46 following the same route between Rosewell, Bonnyrigg, Dalkeith and the Royal Infirmary.
The full service changes can be found HERE.
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