Petition started against Lothian Bus Service cut

Thursday September 3rd 2015

49 Bus Service Cut Rosewell

Residents of Rosewell, Poltonhall and Bonnyrigg are angered by Lothian Buses decision to reduce by a half the frequency of the popular 49 bus service.

From the 5th October the 49 bus will now run every 30 minutes Monday to Friday instead of the current frequency of every 15 minutes between Sheriffhall, Dalkeith, Bonnyrigg, Poltonhall and Rosewell.

The 49 bus service is regularly used by the elderly, pupils at Lasswade High School, commuters in and around Edinburgh and many people in the area. Employees at the SQA in Sheriffhall and the Royal Infirmary Edinburgh say that this will have a large impact on them.

Local Labour Councillor, Derek Milligan, has branded the bus company’s decision a disgrace.

Councillor Milligan has spoken to Sarah Boyd, head of operations at Lothian Bus, who told him that the number of passengers using the service has dropped however she declined to tell him by how much or give any detailed information citing commercial reasons for not doing so.

Councillor Milligan says that in a previous meeting with Lothian Buses he was told that passenger numbers on the 49 service had grown.

Local people who use the bus say it is always a busy bus during rush hour periods and that Lothian Bus had changed from a single decker bus to a double decker to cope with the demand for the service.

One parent at Lasswade High School is now concerned that in the dark winter afternoons her daughter may have to wait 30 minutes for the bus.

Rosewell residents are particularly impacted as they are already have a poor bus service.

Given the outcry by residents to Lothian Buses decision Midlothian View has started an online petition to urge the bus company to change their mind. The petition can be found HERE.

The detail of the changes to the service from Sunday 5th October are

Service 49

Rosewell – Poltonhall – Bonnyrigg – Eskbank Stn & Tesco – Dalkeith – Sheriffhall Park & Ride – Danderhall A7 – ERI – Cameron Toll – Bridges – Leith Walk – Lochend – Portobello – The Jewel @ Asda

Revised Timetable

On Mondays to Fridays, the existing 15-minute frequency is maintained between The Jewel and Sheriffhall Park & Ride via the City Centre. However, south of Sheriffhall only two buses an hour will continue to Dalkeith, Bonnyrigg, Poltonhall and Rosewell thereby reducing the 49 frequency to half-hourly.

On Saturdays, the frequency of service 49 will be curtailed to every 20-minutes, but all 49 journeys will operate to and from Rosewell. The Saturday timetable will be coordinated with Service 33 (also running every 20 minutes) to provide a 10-minute headway on the common sections of route.

On Sundays there will be no change to the 49 frequency, but there will be minor timetable changes.

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