Calendar An icon of a desk calendar. Cancel An icon of a circle with a diagonal line across. Caret An icon of a block arrow pointing to the right. Email An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of the Facebook "f" mark. Google An icon of the Google "G" mark. Linked In An icon of the Linked In "in" mark. Logout An icon representing logout. Profile An icon that resembles human head and shoulders. Telephone An icon of a traditional telephone receiver. Tick An icon of a tick mark. Is Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes. Is Not Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes with a diagonal line through it. Pause Icon A two-lined pause icon for stopping interactions. Quote Mark A opening quote mark. Quote Mark A closing quote mark. Arrow An icon of an arrow. Folder An icon of a paper folder. Breaking An icon of an exclamation mark on a circular background. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Caret An icon of a caret arrow. Clock An icon of a clock face. Close An icon of the an X shape. Close Icon An icon used to represent where to interact to collapse or dismiss a component Comment An icon of a speech bubble. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Ellipsis An icon of 3 horizontal dots. Envelope An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Home An icon of a house. Instagram An icon of the Instagram logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. Magnifying Glass An icon of a magnifying glass. Search Icon A magnifying glass icon that is used to represent the function of searching. Menu An icon of 3 horizontal lines. Hamburger Menu Icon An icon used to represent a collapsed menu. Next An icon of an arrow pointing to the right. Notice An explanation mark centred inside a circle. Previous An icon of an arrow pointing to the left. Rating An icon of a star. Tag An icon of a tag. Twitter An icon of the Twitter logo. Video Camera An icon of a video camera shape. Speech Bubble Icon A icon displaying a speech bubble WhatsApp An icon of the WhatsApp logo. Information An icon of an information logo. Plus A mathematical 'plus' symbol. Duration An icon indicating Time. Success Tick An icon of a green tick. Success Tick Timeout An icon of a greyed out success tick. Loading Spinner An icon of a loading spinner. Facebook Messenger An icon of the facebook messenger app logo. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Facebook Messenger An icon of the Twitter app logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. WhatsApp Messenger An icon of the Whatsapp messenger app logo. Email An icon of an mail envelope. Copy link A decentered black square over a white square.

Auchterarder residents urged to step up as community bus service goes three days a week

The Auchterarder Community Bus Group is adding an extra day to its service following funding fears earlier this year

Auchterarder community bus passengers protest outside St Margaret's Hospital in the town.
Auchterarder locals staged a protest when the community bus service was cut. Image: Steve MacDougall/DC Thomson.

Auchterarder residents are celebrating a partial victory in the fight to save their community bus.

Locals protested earlier this year after the popular round-town service was reduced from six days a week to two due to a funding cut.

However, the charity which runs the bus has now obtained financial support to restore the service to three days a week.

Townspeople are being asked to vote on which additional day would suit them best.

The 49/49A service links locals with St Margaret’s Hospital, the Aytoun Hall and the Co-op.

Auchterarder town bus outside St Margaet's Hospital
The Auchterarder town bus is a vital community asset. Image: Steve MacDougall/DC Thomson.

It currently runs on Tuesdays and Fridays.

There is now an option to add Monday, Wednesday or Thursday, starting in November or December this year.

The closing date for responses is today.

A spokesman for the Auchterarder Community Bus Group said residents could pick up a copy of the survey on the bus, in the Library and at St Margaret’s out-patients department.

People can also email their first and second preferences to acbug2018@gmail.com.

Bus provides a vital link for Auchterarder community

The service was launched in August 2019 and daily passenger numbers quickly rose to more than 50.

Locals staged a protest outside St Margaret’s Hospital in May when details of the cuts emerged.

They included Angela Laurie, community connector for the Auchterarder and Aberuthven Community Action Plan.

Angela Laurie
Angela Laurie. Image: Steve MacDougall/DC Thomson.

She said the town bus was much more than just a means of transport and encouraged everyone to have their say before the survey closes today.

“For many people the bus is a vital link between home and the wider community, providing a much-needed opportunity for social interaction,” she said.

The service is operated by Docherty’s Midland Coaches on behalf of Auchterarder Community Bus Group (ACBuG).

The initial funding of £150,000 over four years came from the Auchterarder Community Facilities Fund, which comes from developer contributions.

ACBuG has sought additional funding from other sources to help meet its annual costs.

Passengers are charged a flat fare of £1.20. But they almost all have bus passes so income from users is close to zero.

Conversation