Fife bus service shake up: these are the routes being stopped or changed after school holidays
Fife’s bus services are in for a shake-up ahead of schools returning next month - and some will be scrapped because of low usage.
Stagecoach has announced a revised structure for the routes it runs on behalf of Fife Council. The new timetable come until effect on August 19 when the schools go back after the summer break, and it is also making “significant changes” to the Dunfermline network to cater for travel to the new learning campus in Duloch, due to open at this time. The shake-up will also impact on some Glenrothes services.
On its website, Stagecoach said: “We welcome customer feedback on timings or adjustments to these proposals before they are finalised.” The consultation will close on June 30.
In Glenrothes, service 30 (Glenrothes bus station to Woodside) will be withdrawn due to low usage and ongoing access issues. Low passenger numbers also mean the number 40 (Glenrothes bus station to Glenrothes Asda) is being scrapped.
Other service being withdrawn because of low usage include Service 93/93A (Morrisons to St Andrews bus station); Service AZ1 (Halbeath Park and Ride to Dunfermline bus station) but services 1, 1A, 5 and certain journeys on the 19 will serve the site. Also going is the 7D (Kelty to Dalgety Bay or North Queensferry) from sections of the route to/from North Queensferry railway station and Kelty Main Street north of Keltyhill Road to improve reliability.
The 33 from Kirkcaldy bus station to Dunfermline bus station will be withdrawn from Hill of Beath. Extra evening journeys will be added between Kirkcaldy and Halbeath, which are tendered by Fife Council. Some Fife bus routes will also be given a different service number as part of the changes.
The operator is planning to add new services between Ferrytoll and Fife Leisure Park, Dunfermline and Stirling, and Newburgh and Perth. The 43/43A daytime journeys will be retimed with a loop introduced at Methilhill, while the 65 replaces the 36 between Perth and Newburgh and will extend to Cupar and St Andrews. The 32 service will be extended to Glenrothes Hospital, replacing the 36, with minor timing changes to improve reliability.