A Perthshire politician led a debate in Scottish Parliament this week to protect the future of “lifeline” local bus services.
The Members Business Motion – titled ‘Protecting Rural Bus Services’ – saw MSPs from across the political spectrum come together on Wednesday to call for greater protections and prevent service cuts.
The debate comes after a number of communities have mobilised to try and prevent the cancellation of First Bus’s X53 service, which links Kinross and Stirling, in early January 2022.
More than 530 people have now written to First Bus asking them to reconsider their decision to save the service ahead of the roll out of free bus travel for under 22s.
Speaking in the Chamber, Mid Scotland and Fife MSP Mark Ruskell shared stories from his constituents who will be affected by the cancellation of the X53 route.
This included three generations of the same family who would struggle to support each other with childcare or get to work without the service, and a constituent who will be faced with a four mile walk to his nearest bus stop.
Mr Mark Ruskell said: “This debate has shown us exactly how important rural bus services are to communities across the whole of Scotland.
“Everyone deserves affordable, reliable and accessible public transport services regardless of where they live. But all too often, rural communities are acutely vulnerable to cuts.
“Services like the X53 are lifeline routes that help people access essential services, encourage young people to travel independently, and critically keep polluting private cars off our roads.
“There was resounding support for the X53 in the debate, and I look forward to hearing more from the Local Transport Authorities about ways we can save this essential service.”
Responding on behalf of the Scottish Government, minister for transport Graeme Dey accepted that rural bus services appear to be more vulnerable to service cuts and revealed that the relevant Local Transport Authorities are currently exploring what alternatives can be found to prevent the cancellation of the X53.
“I agree with the minister for transport that the current system is not working in the best interests of our communities, and that things need to change, fast,” Mr Ruskell added.
“The challenges facing the bus companies are stark, but there is no excuse for leaving rural communities behind.
“We need to be doing everything we can to protect lifeline rural routes like the X53, including taking urgent action to resolve workforce issues, and build a resilient bus network in Scotland that keeps everyone connected.”
