In September, we held a well attended public meeting in Kirliston on the issue of the 38 bus.
This followed major cuts to the frequency of the service and ongoing problems with time keeping and ticketing.
We have now received the following update from First Bus following the meeting.
- Time keeping of services
First Bus say they have had inspectors out in Kirkliston on both a covert and overt basis to conduct monitoring surveys on the route. Their surveys indicate that up to 15 minutes is needed to travel from Kirkliston West End to the Distillery at peak times due to traffic volumes in the area and the traffic light sequence at the Kirkliston Crossroads.
They say they are developing an “On-time performance strategy for service 38”. This involves monitoring to make sure that vehicles leave the depot on time and, in turn, start out on their first trip on time from the terminal points. They have also re-checked all of the GPS locations for bus stops along the route to confirm the robustness of all running time data.
The Performance Supervisor is monitoring the service on a day to day basis to identify specific issues and has promised to address them as quickly as possible.
It is important that any and all issues of buses not keeping to time or not turning up at all are reported to First (see below) and to Bus Users Scotland (see end).
2. Size of buses (e.g. double deckers)
First Bus say local measures have been put in place at the Livingston Depot to make sure that double deckers are allocated to peak time journeys. Their observations are that double deckers are not necessarily needed in terms of passenger loadings per trip.
The Inspectors who carried out the street surveys did not conclude an overall lack of capacity. If customers have not been able to board a journey due to capacity, First Bus want to hear of this so they can investigate specific issues.
Please make sure to copy us into any correspondence you have with First on this point.
3. Real time information at bus stops
First Bus say they are continuing to work with the SEStran Real Time Information supplier to find a solution to the screens issue which is still not resolved.
The real time information system which was on the buses had been switched off because they believed the ticket machines could give the required feed. This has not been the case and so they are now in the process of putting the old system back in place. First say the app has been looked at and appears to be working.
We intend to keep pressure on First to get this real time information issue resolved as soon as possible.
4. Customer complaint response times
The serious issues with getting responses to questions and complaints has been raised with their Customer Service Centre management team so that improvements can be made.
Customers should submit their comments through the FirstBus webform here:
Alternatively, customers should phone 0345 646 0707 (Mon-Fri 0700-1900, Weekends/Bank Holidays 0900-1700). The First Bus Twitter feed is also manned during the same hours.
First say their response timescales are set at 14 working days but the customer service team are supposed to respond sooner if needed. First Bus are not prepared to accept our request for a dedicated complaint email or webform for the 38 bus.
If you make a complaint and do not get a reply within 14 days, please let us know.
5. Ticketing issues
The only valid FirstDay ticket that customers can buy for travel between Kirkliston and Edinburgh is the Zone M FirstDay ticket, which can only be purchased from the driver on the bus at a price of £4.00. The ticket is not available on the M-tickets app (we are again querying why), it can be purchased and paid for on board using cash, contactless credit/debit card, as well as the Google/Apple Pay digital wallets.
The higher priced FirstDay ticket (£4.30) that residents have spotted and have (incorrectly) purchased from the M-tickets app only covers travel within Zone L (Livingston/Bathgate/Whitburn, etc). Kirkliston and Edinburgh are both located inside Zone M and, therefore, customers cannot buy or use a Zone L ticket for use in a different lettered zone to the one that it’s intended for.
We do not consider this a satisfactory answer and are pursuing this further.
6. Going Forward
Given the serious performance issues we have seen with First, we are strongly encouraging people to complain direct to Bus Users Scotland whenever buses are significantly late or do not show up. Bus Users Scotland is the Scottish Government recognised body for complaints of this kind.
All complaints should be send to enquiries@bususers.org listing the date, time and nature of the complaint. To help us build a case file, please copy us into any complaint you make.
Working with Alex Cole-Hamilton MSP, we are also continuing our campaign to get Lothian Buses to start a direct service between Kirkliston and the city centre. We continue to have serious doubts over the continued performance of First which makes it all the more important for the Council owned and operated bus company to properly serve the village.
