How campaigners saved the Dumfries to Edinburgh bus service

It was feared the Dumfries to Edinburgh bus service could be lost last summer

When communities along the route of the Dumfries to Edinburgh 101/102 service heard it was under threat last summer they mobilised quickly.

Describing it as a "vital link" for the towns and villages it serves, they took to the streets and their keyboards.

A protest was held at a number of stops along the route while an online petition gathered support.

It won them a short-term reprieve initially and, ultimately, a new operator to take over the service.

The road to saving the link between southern Scotland and the capital, however, has been a bumpy one.

Protests were held along the route when it was under threat of removal

News came out of the blue that the service might not continue after the end of its contract on 13 August last year.

A funding lifeline was secured to extend that deadline but a first bid to find a new operator failed.

It was not until January that it was announced that Lockerbie-based Houston's Coaches would take over the route on 1 April.

They said they were "excited" to take on the service with new buses expected to arrive next month.

Regain confidence

Retired university lecturer Sheena Travis, from Dolphinton, was among those celebrating when a new operator was found.

She has been unable to drive since having a stroke in December 2021.

"At this stage, I will be unable to drive for at least another year and there is a possibility that I may not be able to drive again," she said.

"Although my family and friends have been very good in terms of giving me lifts for vital hospital appointments, I am otherwise completely reliant on the local bus service to travel to weekly appointments at West Linton Health Centre.

"The bus service also enables me to travel independently to Edinburgh for occasional appointments and meetings."

She said the bus was about more than just travel.

"The bus service has been a big part of my recovery as it enabled me to regain confidence and self-esteem by giving me the independence to continue to have some social life through catching up with friends in Edinburgh," she said.

It also helps her go to see her football team - Hibs - where she has been a season ticket holder for nearly 40 years.

Quick off the blocks

Janet Moxley set up Stand Up for Our Buses during a previous threat to the service

Janet Moxley, from Biggar, set up Stand Up for Our Buses in 2012 when there was a previous threat to the service and has been part of its steering group since.

She said they were lucky that it already existed when it came to mobilising opposition to the potential loss of the service.

"This meant that we were able to be quick off the blocks as we already had a social media presence, mailing lists and were an organisation that was known and trusted by the public," she said.

"We were therefore able to get a campaign started within a few days of becoming aware of the threat to the service, which was essential as the contract was due to expire within a couple of weeks of when we discovered that it might not be renewed."

She also describes the bus service as a vital one and said a survey they carried out had shown it was better used than figures taken during the Covid pandemic had suggested.

"In many ways the 101/2 is the glue that holds communities across a swathe of southern Scotland together," she said.

"Many of the settlements along the route are quite isolated from services such as shops and health care and people need the bus to access these.

"The bus gets people to work, school and education."

Houston's is taking over the service from 1 April

It also brings in tourist income and is particularly important to people who cannot or do not want to drive.

Although Janet admitted the campaign had not been "fully successful" - with two runs lost per day between Biggar and Edinburgh - she said that was better than no service at all.

Her advice to others facing similar potential cuts was simple - get the public on board, literally.

"Don't take it lying down," she said.

"Believe you can win and be prepared to campaign hard.

"It's really the public on the buses and along the route who have been the stars of this campaign.

"We wouldn't have got where we have without them."