Anger as bus company pulls all services from West Lothian

dailyrecord.co.uk:

Bus operator McGill’s has announced it’s pulling all services from West Lothian, leaving hundreds of passengers stranded.The company made the shock announcement on Tuesday night that it will cease its Eastern Scottish operations in the county.Two routes will be withdrawn from October 15, with four more ending from December 2.The services X22 and X24 between Livingston and Edinburgh will be axed from October, although Lothian Country does offer an alternative bus.In December, services 21, 23, 25 and 26, which are Livingston area locals, will end.McGill’s says it is consulting with the local authority on the latter, and that news is hoped for in due course on possible successors.Consultation with staff will begin shortly, but the owning group is “committed to avoiding redundancies where possible.”Many people took to social media after hearing the news to complain.Carol Mizener said: “So no way to get to St.

John’s for cancer scans, treatment,or visits, or to The Centre. Housebound brings a whole new meaning.”Lynne White said: “Absolute shambles.

We are a growing town that can’t organise a bus service that helps everyone!The buses never show up on time or are cancelled, there’s absolutely no consideration taken into when the actual people that work in the centre and actually commute to work and when they finish!“Sometimes I’m left waiting 30-40 minutes after finishing my shift for a bus adding into my day!”Jane Watson added: “How poor is this?

Hopefully another company will take over these routes, not everyone has a car at their disposal.”McGill’s Group CEO Ralph Roberts says it is “deeply regrettable” that the Eastern Scottish services will end.He continued: “We were fully aware of the challenges that existed for the