Congestion problems lead to bus service reduction in Fort William
Public transport users in Corpach and the Plantation are feeling short changed this week following changes to the former N46/N47 services which went into operation on Monday (July 15).
Operated by Shiel Buses on behalf of The Highland Council, services in and around Fort William, have suffered from an increasing level of road traffic congestion.
Following an extended period of consultation between Highland Council, community leaders and Shiel Buses, which reviewed the ongoing impact that causes disruption to the services, members of the public were informed of the changes earlier this month:
On the 15th July 2024:
- Our 502 Saturday service will depart Acharacle at 11am instead of midday.
- Our N46/N47 will be cancelled and replaced by three new timetables called the 46, 47 and X47. They are registered as separate timetables. The impact will see an increase in journey time, and to achieve this it is necessary to utilise the existing resources which will mean a reduction in frequency of buses serving Corpach and Plantation.
The new timetable will have half hourly services to and from Corpach until 9:30am where the service will become hourly until 5.30pm. The Plantation will have an hourly service from 8.48am.
Following negative feedback from service users, Shiel Buses put out the following statement last week: "Shiel Buses remains committed to providing a quality service to its customers.
"Any changes to the timetable are made by The Highland Council and, whilst we discuss our experiences, the authority to change anything remains with them.
"These changes have been reached after careful consideration of the options available to us. Additional resources are needed to maintain the current offering, but we are aware that there is no funding available to achieve this.
"Therefore, to maintain the reliability of the timetable, frequencies on sections of the route have been reduced. These areas of reduced frequencies have been identified based upon passenger usage."
David Summers, the council’s Principal Transport Officer, commented: "It is disappointing that these changes have to be made.
"Collaborative consultation has taken place over the last number of months between the council and Shiel Buses to explore how best to improve reliability and manage the impact of current traffic congestion problems using the existing resources available in Lochaber."
Since learning of the changes disgruntled service users on the affected routes have taken to various social media channels to air there views, while Fort William and Ardnamurchan councillor Sarah Fanet has her own ideas on how to solve the congestion problems.
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