Councillor Appeals to Stagecoach Boss over Poor Service
>> 13 March 2013
A Buchan councillor has written to Stagecoach boss Sir Brian Souter over the poor service provided to travellers in the area.
Peterhead South & Cruden SNP councillor Stephen Smith has been receiving regular complaints from angry passengers who have faced delayed journeys and excessive waits at bus stops as a result of a spate of mechanical failures on the Peterhead to Aberdeen route.
Councillor Smith says he has received a spate of complaints recently from travellers in Cruden Bay, some of whom have missed appointments and been late for work as a result.
Commenting, Councillor Smith said:
“It seems clear to me from the feedback I get that the bus drivers are doing a good job but are being let down by the standard of the buses they are expected to drive.
“It seems there has been a huge number of mechanical breakdowns recently, particularly affecting the Peterhead to Aberdeen service. If this were just a case of an odd failure every now and again, I’m sure people would understand, but this is something far greater than that. Looking from the outside, it seems like a clearout is needed and some new buses brought into the fleet.
“I’ve written to Sir Brian Souter to make him aware of the damage this is doing to customer service, as well as the reputation of Stagecoach locally, and I hope that action will be taken to restore the standard of service. It’s not fair on the passengers nor the drivers to have to put up with this.”
In his letter to Sir Brian Souter, Councillor Smith states:
“ . . . there appears to be a sustained and recurring problem with the reliability of the vehicles operating out of Peterhead. As you will be aware, the Peterhead to Aberdeen route is particularly well-used but it is not helpful to Stagecoach’s reputation for the bus service between Europe’s oil capital and Aberdeenshire’s largest town to be continually letting its customers down in this way.”
