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Angus woman gets up at 4am to share Stagecoach’s daily X7 cancellations with families after teen girls stranded

Michelle Fletcher has set up a car pool group. Image: Michelle Fletcher.
Michelle Fletcher has set up a car pool group. Image: Michelle Fletcher.

Michelle Fletcher has spent every night last week getting up at 4am so she can share Stagecoach’s daily X7 bus cancellations on Facebook.

She has lived in Ferryden, near Montrose, since 1999, but due to the inconsistent bus service being an “absolute travesty” she says she has had to take drastic measures.

Stagecoach has been posting the times of its cancelled services on its Twitter and website at 3am.

But those without Twitter have been left unawares, and are left standing at the bus stop for up to hours due to cancelled services.

The X7 route connects Dundee and Aberdeen, travelling up the A92 coast road through Arbroath, Montrose, St Cyrus, Inverbervie and Stonehaven.

According to the timetable, one bus is scheduled every hour.

But locals claim there have been cancellations every day since the new timetable was rolled out earlier this month – with the morning service most often axed.

‘I feel obliged to do this’

Mrs Fletcher says that finding out that your morning bus was cancelled at 3am the night before makes it impossible to plan your day.

She said: “I have been getting up at that time in the morning to share the cancellations on Facebook.

“I only got two hours of sleep the other night as (it is) hard to get back to sleep again.

“I feel obliged to do this because not everybody’s on Twitter but this has been going on for days.”

Teen girls left stranded in the dark

Despite Mrs Fletcher’s best efforts, many people are still unaware their bus has been cancelled.

Michelle Faith’s 15-year-old daughter was left waiting on a bus from Montrose to Inverbervie for two hours after two in a row never showed up – despite being on the electronic timetable at the bus stop.

Her daughter’s friends were also left stranded after the 10pm and 11pm buses never showed – causing the parents to come and collect them.

The bus rank at Union Square with the Stagecoach X7 service still displaying on the electronic screens.
Concerns have been raised about the impact of young girls being left stranded in the dark. Photo: Chris Sumner/DC Thomson

Mrs Faith said: “It’s a scary thought.

“You take it for granted the bus will be picking them up so as a parent you get on with your evening.

“What if parents have had a glass of wine and can’t pick them up? What are you supposed to do?”

Car pool Facebook group launched

To help deal with the inconsistent service, Mrs Fletcher has also launched a car pool Facebook group for the Ferryden area.

She says she has had people contact her about the elderly people who have been impacted the most by the cancellations.

She said: “It’s causing a lot of heartache. I’ve been really quite emotional about the whole thing.

Michelle Fletcher standing in front of the harbour at night.
Michelle Fletcher wants to keep communities up to date.

“It really has been partly about community spirit, which is really what I’m all about.

“I’m not going to stop posting these tweets but I don’t understand why they’re not posting them until so late.

Local politicians give their support

Local politicians in the area have been expressing their sympathies with the people affected.

Ferryden and Craig Community Council said: “We are acutely aware of the disruption being caused to the local bus services by the staff shortages at Stagecoach.

The X7 bus driving on its Aberdeen route.
The X7 is used by communities along the coast from Dundee to Aberdeen. Image: Heather Fowlie / DC Thomson.

“There has been considerable inconvenience and stress being caused to our community by this disruption.”

Both Angus North and Mearns SNP MSP Mairi Gougeon and Scottish Conservative North East MSP Tess White have asked Stagecoach for a solution.

What does Stagecoach say?

A spokeswoman for Stagecoach East Scotland said: “We understand that cancellations can be frustrating to our customers who need to travel, and we are sorry for the disruption that some customers are currently experiencing.

“However, due to the nationwide driver shortage and other factors outwith our control, there may be instances where services are unfortunately cancelled or delayed.

“In the event that a service has to be cancelled, we always look to provide as much notice as we possibly can to enable people to make alternative arrangements.

“Customers can contact our customer service team about refunds for tickets they were unable to use due to service cancellation as per the ticket terms and conditions.”

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