Stagecoach plans to slash a Sunday bus service to Newburgh will leave vulnerable people isolated, says a local mum.
Megan Robertson, 37, recently moved to the town.
But she has since discovered the number 36 service she relies on could be stopped on Sundays.
Megan says phasing out the service, which links Perth and Glenrothes and stops in Newburgh, will impact on both her family life and the wider community.
“It’s crazy.
“I’ve moved here with my little girl. She goes to see her dad at the weekends but he’s not going to be able to have her over to the Sunday because he doesn’t drive and I don’t drive.”
Cutting off town transport links ‘isolating’
Community worker Megan is also worried about the impact bus cuts will have for people in the area.
Results of a study carried out during lockdown identified “a great deal of social isolation and poverty” across north east Fife.
Megan warns the Stagecoach bus cuts could be “isolating” for many.
“I work with a lot of vulnerable people, and with people from all walks of life who experience all different kinds of deprivation.
“Whether it be isolation or financial, it doesn’t really matter.
“Taking off the bus on a Sunday is just adding to that.”
Megan says it is the wrong time to take buses off the road, with people across the country hit by the cost of living crisis.
“This is not going to be good for the community. It’s not building relationships with Stagecoach or trust in public transport as a reliable option.
“Especially when we’re looking at saving fuel and being ecologically friendly.”
Petition to save bus services
Stagecoach is currently running a consultation on the changes, which it is set to introduce at the end of October.
Meanwhile, Local Lib Dem politicians Wendy Chamberlain MP and Willie Rennie MSP have launched a petition. It calls on Stagecoach to reconsider the cuts.
Tay Coast Lib Dem councillor Gary Holt says the proposed Stagecoach bus timetables would have widespread ramifications.
“They will be serious for some, whether they use these bus services for health reasons, employment, social activities, or essential shopping.
“We have heard the testimony from residents highlighting the genuine hardship that individuals will face because of these changes.
“This is particularly true and acute for areas of abject rural poverty which have high cases of social isolation.”
A Stagecoach spokesperson said it is not possible to keep running its current timetable because of increased costs.
“We will always try to keep routes operational where we can, however where there are very low passenger numbers it is sometimes just not possible to do so.”
The spokesperson said the company was in active discussions with local authorities. She urged bus travellers to respond to the online consultation.
Conversation