Concerns are being raised that holidaymakers and Glasgow Airport staff are being left with 'no other option' but to pay for taxis to get home, given that the last Airport Express 500 service stops at 11pm each night at present.
First Glasgow says that the last evening Glasgow Airport Express 500 service departs at 11pm "due to a combination of "driver shortages" and "the current flight schedule" at the airport, but that plans are afoot "for a slightly later finish" in the near future.
The current timetable means that, given the fact the Citylink AIR service between Buchanan Bus Station and Edinburgh Airport runs 24/7, it is actually easier for Glaswegians to get home from Edinburgh Airport than it is from Glasgow Airport.
Glasgow MSP Paul Sweeney responded to the news by saying that it was "beyond a joke" that a city as big as Glasgow doesn't have direct public transport links to the airport, and called for plans for direct metro rail link to come to fruition.
He told Glasgow Live: “It really is beyond a joke that a city of the size and international stature of Glasgow doesn’t have direct public transport links to the airport. Plans have lauded in the past by the council and Scottish Government, only to then be filed away in a box marked 'too difficult'. In 2007, there was a comprehensive plan ready to be developed but the SNP administration pulled the plug and sold the land it was to be developed on. Every time these plans are reneged on, it is ordinary Glaswegians who pay the price, and urgent plans and adequate funding to rectify the issue are required immediately to progress the plans for a Glasgow Metro.
“That short sightedness not only impacts on holidaymakers, but those who work at the airport and are unable to drive often find themselves in taxis home late at night due to the lack of public transport. With Glasgow’s public transport infrastructure badly lacking in investment and ambition, it’s no wonder that most people in Glasgow stick to their cars with the environmental consequences that result. We saw this during COP26 with climate delegates forced into taxis, and frankly it’s mortifying.
“We need ambition from the Scottish Government in this regard. When I’ve raised the issue in the past, I’ve been told by both the Government and the SNP led Glasgow City Council that I am over-exaggerating the severity of the situation but I really do believe people in Glasgow are utterly fed up with the lack of progress here. Every major city in Europe has better transport links to their airports than we do, and ultimately all Glaswegians want is for Glasgow to flourish. Convenient, affordable travel to Glasgow Airport is just one element of the infrastructure upgrades required, and I would urge the Scottish Government and Glasgow City Council to bang their heads together and finally construct a direct metro rail link from the City Centre to the airport.”
Don't miss the latest headlines again. Sign up to our Glasgow Live newsletters here.
Volunteer campaigner Ellie Harrison, of public transport campaign group Get Glasgow Moving, said that the airport would be "properly served" by public transport if their calls for a regulated bus network across Glasgow were answered.
She told Glasgow Live: "We want the entire bus network across the region to be regulated so that bus routes can be planned and coordinated to serve passengers needs, rather than just put on at the whim of private bus companies.
"On a much broader level, if we regulated buses across the whole region, we could make sure that the airport was properly served alongside all other parts of the city and that there was a fair price. In London to get to Heathrow [Airport] there's a mainline train, there's the underground and there's the Heathrow Express. If you go on the underground or mainline train it's the same cost as going to any other tube station on the network, and that's obviously because the whole network is regulated properly by Transport for London."
In response, John Elliot, First Glasgow Network Manager told Glasgow Live: "Our Glasgow Airport Express 500 service was severely impacted by the reduction in air travel as a result of Covid-19. The travel restrictions saw demand for the service collapse overnight and a significant reduction in frequency followed.
“As the number of flights arriving at and depart from Glasgow Airport continues to increase, the demand for our Glasgow Airport Express 500 has followed a similar trend. We are continuing to work closely with Glasgow Airport to ensure our service is aligned with those demand levels.
“The last service currently runs from Glasgow Airport to Buchanan Bus Station at 11pm due to a combination of driver shortages that are being experienced across the industry and the current flight schedule. Plans are in place for a slightly later finishing time for the Glasgow Airport Express 500 service beginning in the near future.”
