CRAIG Hoy, a Conservative MSP for South Scotland, has described a recent meeting between himself and executives at Lothian Buses as “positive and constructive”.
This follows the bus company’s decision to reinstate the X5 bus service between North Berwick and Edinburgh in June after a petition launched by Mr Hoy to bring back the service received more than 1,000 signatures locally.
Mr Hoy had previously criticised the bus operator for failing to engage on the withdrawal of the bus service following his petition.
But he thanked bus executives for their recent engagement and openness about some of the challenges facing East Lothian’s bus network in the months ahead.
He commented: “A number of residents have been in touch to raise concerns about the reliability of local buses and timetabling issues.
“The Lothian Buses representatives who I recently spoke to were forthcoming about some of the challenges they are facing, including ongoing driver shortages, funding in the aftermath of the pandemic and service considerations across the network, and I would like to thank them for taking the time to discuss these issues in detail.
“The discussion was positive, and I understand that they are monitoring the X5 bus service’s timetable which I hope might be altered slightly to arrive with enough time for commuters travelling into the West End of Edinburgh to get into work for 9 o’clock.
“But in the meantime, it is important we support our local bus services where possible to ensure that services like the X5 stay up and running.”
Residents are encouraged to report any issues relating to Lothian Buses in East Lothian to their customer services team directly at https://www.lothianbuses.com/customer-services/
