A firm that has taken control of buses in Falkirk immediately pulled 120 vehicles from the road because they were not up to the company's standards.
McGill's Group - who took over the running of First Scotland East's business in Falkirk, Stirling and West Lothian in September - now believe it will take two years to fully restore the service to the standards they expect.
Upper Braes councillor Claire Mackie-Brown met with the new owners this week, having been overwhelmed with complaints from constituents about infrequent and unreliable bus services since she was elected to Falkirk Council in May.
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After the meeting with CEO Ralph Roberts, Cllr Mackie-Brown said he had been "very transparent" about the scale of the challenge they face. Out of 257 buses bought in the acquisition, 120 were immediately taken off the road and only 26 of those have been repaired and returned to service.
Equally troubling for McGills is the shortage of drivers, which has also been a key factor in buses being cancelled, with either short notice or none at all. Previous owners First Bus put their poor performances down to low passenger numbers following the pandemic and a lack of drivers. McGills say that recruitment is ongoing and that they increased the hourly rate for drivers as soon as they took over.
They are also currently recruiting extra customer service staff as the number of complaints they are receiving is around 500 per cent higher than they would have expected, given their experience as a bus operator in other parts of Scotland.
They hope that changes will gradually become apparent as more vehicles take on the classic Midland Bluebird livery, which McGills have resurrected in the Falkirk and Stirling area.
Councillor Mackie-Brown says that after the discussion she felt positive about the future.
She said: "Mr Roberts was very transparent about the issues they were facing after the takeover. They've certainly got a challenge on their hands but I believe there is a true commitment from McGill's to vastly improve the service and there is a clear strategy and plan to do that.
"It won't happen immediately but there have been improvements so I'm hopeful that in the long-term it's going to work out."
Ralph Roberts, CEO of McGill’s Group, said: “It is now little over six weeks since McGill’s Group took over the former First East Scotland business and we really appreciate both the patience our customers have shown as we work to improve services as well as the exceptional hard work of our local team to help make that happen.
“McGill’s chose to buy the business because our group is very experienced in operating services that serve both urban and rural areas. However, it is clear from the outset that investment will be needed in order for the business to catch up and reach the quality standard we want to offer.
“Of the fleet of buses we acquired from First, 94 are currently off the road as they do not meet the calibre of vehicle we operate and passengers should rightly expect. Many of those will be not re-enter service again but we have been able to bring in reserve buses from elsewhere in McGill’s, with a further 40 expected to arrive between now and March 2023.
“Services in the region also experienced higher levels of customer complaints than we were anticipating, partly as a result of the legacy vehicle issues we are now addressing. We have worked to improve local customer service systems but as a result of the overall improvements we’re making we are already seeing less complaints as we deliver improved service reliability and punctuality."
“We have made huge strides in the last six weeks but it will take time. I am personally familiar with the area, having lived and worked there, and over the coming years we plan to make significant strides in order to get the business and its services into the shape we insist upon.”
