Passengers make sweet music at Fife bus station

For in pride of place in the bus station’s waiting area sits an upright piano whose ivories travellers are welcome to tickle.

It was put there by bus company Stagecoach as part of National Customer Service Week last month.

And there are no plans to take it away any time soon, a spokesman for the company told the Citizen.

Sarah Elliott, marketing manager, Stagecoach East Scotland, said: “We wanted to try something a little different in one of our bus stations to engage our customers, so when the music idea was suggested by one of our team, we looked at where we could pick up a second hand piano.

“Soon after – and in time for National Customer Service Week – we installed the piano, had it tuned and sat back to see if anyone would give it a go!”

And have a go St Andreans have been, according to Sarah: “It’s been great to hear some local talent playing, with a few regular customers coming to the bus station a little early to have a go and it’s great to see the surprise on people’s faces to witness an impromptu performance in the waiting area!

“The piano will stay as long as people continue to play it, or until it can no longer be tuned effectively and we look forward to hearing some of St Andrews’ talented musicians or even newcomers perform for our customers and staff.”

Customer Service Week also coincided with the launch of a new free app to save passengers time by providing improved information about their journey and live bus tracking.

The Stagecoach Bus app offers a simple journey planning tool which uses interactive maps and the smartphone GPS system to help customers identify their nearest bus stop and the most suitable bus service for their journey requirements. They can also find out information on journey length and available fare options.

Passengers can also access live running times via their smartphone to check the status of their journey before catching the bus – giving them more time to finish what they are doing before leaving for the bus stop.

Andrew Jarvis, managing director of Stagecoach East Scotland, said: “We know that there can be issues which affect our customers’ journeys.That’s why we are always looking at how we can deliver even better services for people who travel with us.”