Susan gets the best seat on the bus
THE POSITION of Transport & Environment
Convener was officially approved just as we went
to press, but The Edinburgh Bus Users’ Group
(EBUG) had already penned a letter to the new
Convener, (whoever it might be), and the letter
is reproduced here with their permission:Dear Councillor,
Congratulations on your new appointment as
Transport Convener. We are sure you will be
aware that this can be a challenging role, and
we thought that some of our observations may
prove helpful.
At Full Council in September 2022, our
deputation acknowledged how Edinburgh’s bus
network is successful, but often taken for
granted.
In the 1980s and 1990s, there was a
successful partnership between the Council
and bus operators. At that time, Lothian Buses
operated a successful service, grew passenger
numbers and returned a dividend to its
share-owning Councils.
In parallel, The City of Edinburgh Council
used its extensive powers as highway authority
to assist and where appropriate prioritise bus
operations.
Latterly, Edinburgh Council lost sight of this
but while Cllr Arthur was Transport Convener,
a lot of ground was regained. We hope you will
progress with his legacy.We feel it is vital to:- Maintain a partnership between
Edinburgh Council and bus operators
which recognises that each should focus
on what it can do, and what it does best - Enhance the capacity of the Edinburgh
Council bus team with a clear focus on
delivering tangible improvements for bus
users. - Renew, improve and maintain bus stops.
- Review bus shelter provision, prioritising
bus user needs.Complete the renewal of
real-time information displays.- Reduce walking distances at interchanges.
- Recognise that cutting stops and
increasing the distance between them
discriminates against older and less
mobile bus users. - Resolve the bus station situation at pace.
- Improve travel times and reliability by
creating more bus-friendly highway
infrastructure. - Extend bus lane and bus gate operating
hours to 7am-7pm, 7 days a week, as
agreed unanimously by Full Council in
July 2022. - Monitor the need for bus lanes and ensure
those in use are properly enforced. - Protect the needs of people with visual,
mobility or other impairments. - Retain bus services through the city
centre.
Current Floating Bus Stop designs do not meet
the needs of bus users and should not continue
to be rolled out (worryingly, it appears that
these are being introduced by default in new
projects).
The Scottish Government “paused” the Bus
Partnership Fund.
As a matter of urgency, the Council must
work to progress the 8 (or 9) bus priority
corridors which were to be covered by that
Fund.
Last year, passengers made 110 million trips
on Lothian Buses alone.
That is more than the entire Scotrail
network. As Convener, you will encounter
proposals from all quarters presented as ways
to solve various transport problems.
In addition, there is already a plethora of
policies and plans. We believe the remainder of
this Council term should focus on delivery
rather than rexamining principles.
We look forward to productively working
with you and your team.4 55
An open letter to
Edinburgh’s next
Transport Convener
New Chair for board
of Lothian Buses
POLITICS
Susan Deacon (left) will be in
charge of the busesLiving Wage offers a
pay rise for 200,
CBCC holding special meeting
By DR SCOTT ARTHUR MP FOR
EDINBURGH SOUTH WEST
IN MY FIRST COLUMN in The
Edinburgh Reporter as the new
MP for Edinburgh South West, I
would like to start by thanking my
predecessor. Joanna Cherry, KC,
held the seat for 9 years and was a
formidable parliamentarian. I
wish her well for the future.
The election result across
Scotland, however, confirms what
we knew – people wanted
change, and there was a desire to
get the country back on track.
My campaign team turned a
33% deficit into a 13% lead.
Whilst this is a humbling result, I
am mindful that I won with just
40.9% of the vote. Indeed, the
61.9% turnout means that only
25% of those eligible voted for me.
I want to make clear, however,
that I am here for everyone –
whether you voted for me or not.
I will be here to listen to you no
matter what your age, sex,
disability, gender, race or
birthplace.
What’s more, if you are being
attacked due to these
characteristics, I will work with
the community to defend you. We
are all equal in my constituency.
Indeed, just like other Labour
Governments did, my hope is that
over the term of this parliament
we will make the country a fairer
one to live in and do business.
This will happen despite the mess
we inherited.
An early step we have taken is
to give an estimated 200,
Scots a pay rise with changes we
are making to the Living Wage.
We have asked that setting the
Living Wage takes into accountthe cost of living crisis, and that
we end the nonsense of paying
people less simply because of
their age.
The House of Commons Library
tells me that this simple change
could benefit 1,200 of the lowestpaid workers in my constituency.
This is just the start of the
change our country needs, and
I will work with local people
to deliver.[email protected]By PHYLLIS STEPHENA CONFERENCE is being held by
Edinburgh Trade Union Council and will
take place on 14 September at Augustine
United Church George IV Bridge EH1 1EL
from 10am to 1pm. The free event is being
convened to discuss the impact of the
Edinburgh Integration Joint Board (EIJB)
cuts in the next financial year. There will
be speakers from trade unions UNISON
and UNITE who represent local authority
social care workers and also from
community health organisations who
provide services to the community and
who work with social care users groups.
Anyone with an interest is invited - trade
unionists, community health activists,
users of social care and carers.
A free lunch is included.Contact edinburghtradeunioncouncil@
gmail.com for details or register on
Eventbrite.By PHYLLIS STEPHENCLLR STEPHEN JENKINSON
(photographed left) is taking up the
biggest public-facing role on the council
as new Transport and Environment
Convener. This job covers the city’s roads,
footpaths and potholes, bin collection
and cleansing, and is the one which
affects most people most directly. First
elected in 2022 as Labour councillor for
Pentland Hills Ward, he accepts he is
responsible for his own fate. He was
election agent for Scott Arthur who is
now the MP for Edinburgh South West
and this led to the Convenership vacancy.Edinburgh born and bred, Stephen went
to Boroughmuir High School and lives in
south Edinburgh. He joined RBS more
than 30 years ago and is now a senior IT
specialist. He told The Edinburgh
Reporter he is excited about the job and
will continue the professional attitude
which Scott had fostered. He said: “My
past experience lends well to the
political environment. I am pro growth,
pro development and pro business. One
of the things that holds us back is the
bureaucracy and the length of time it
takes us to deliver key infrastructure
projects. I would lobby for the levers to
increase the pace of delivery.”Stephen to become driving force
Free conference on
social care crisis
By STAFF REPORTERBUS OPERATOR Lothian has appointed
former Minister, Susan Deacon, CBE, as Chair
for an initial period of two years.
She succeeds the outgoing Chair Jim
McFarlane who, unusually, is remaining on the
board as a non-executive director along with
senior independent director Steve Cassidy until
new board members are hired. A recruitment
process is underway to find more people for
those roles.
The new board will then lead the bus
company into the next phase when it joins
up with Edinburgh Trams in one integrated
public transport company.
Council Leader Cammy Day said: “I am
delighted that Susan Deacon is taking on
the role of Lothian Chair.
“She is deeply committed to the success
of Lothian and has a long and successful
track record of contribution to the city.
“I’m also confident that the wider
changes to the Board will ensure the
company continues to grow and
develop, while playing a full and
active part in our plans to
integrate bus and tram
operations for the benefit of
Edinburgh’s travelling public.
“Finally, I want also to pay
tribute to outgoing Chair, Jim
McFarlane, for his immensecontribution to Lothian and to the city over
many years.
“I’ll be recognising this formally as a
congratulatory motion at a future meeting of
the Council. I’d also like to thank Steve Cassidy
who will be standing down as a Non-
Executive Director later this year.”
Susan Deacon said: “It is a real privilege
to take on the role of Chair of Lothian.
The company has a rich history going
back more than 100 years and has
delivered unparalleled excellence
in the provision of high-quality
public transport to the peopleof Edinburgh and the Lothians.
“I am deeply indebted to my predecessor, Jim
McFarlane, for his successful stewardship of
Lothian over many years - he leaves a very
strong foundation on which to build.
“I look forward to working with colleagues
across bus and tram to ensure the delivery of
an inclusive, sustainable and fully integrated
public transport network for Scotland’s capital
and the surrounding region in the years to
come.”
Ms Deacon was formerly MSP for Edinburgh
East and Musselburgh, and was also Chair of
the Scottish Police Authority until 2019.CRAMOND AND BARNTON COMMUNITY
COUNCIL (CBCC) are holding a Special
Meeting at Cramond Kirk Hall on Thursday 12
September at 7pm to discuss AMA’s Brighouse
Campus development.
John Loudon, Chair of CBCC said: “The main
issue for discussion on 12 September concerns
the developing plans for the remaining site on
the Brighouse Campus.
The CBCC has yet to submit its formal
response to the PAN 1 exhibition which took
place at the end of May and which was the
subject of discussion at a CBCC meeting held
on 22 June. “The September meeting will discuss the
terms of that proposed response which CBCC
is empowered to submit as a statutory
consultee in the planning process.
“The response for discussion will re-affirm- and support - the significant numbers of
residents of the community who have already
signalled their overwhelming backing for what
is proposed by AMA.
“But it will also offer what it believes to be
some suggestions for adjustments which it
believes will further improve the amenity for
the benefit of the community and without
detriment to the viability of the development.”
Scott ArthurNo u-turn at
the W Hotel
THE AREA OUTSIDE the W Hotel will be
retained for pedestrians, and there will be a
ban on taxis and coaches which have been
using the area to drop off hotel guests.
The area which lies just at the top of Elder
Street is marked off by rising bollards which
the owner of St James Quarter operates.
The W Edinburgh is the anchor point for the
St James Quarter with its flourish on top
sparking discussion and conversation in every
black cab. But now black cabs, executive
coaches and private hire cars will not be
allowed to arrive and leave from the front door.
It is likely that this move, which went against
the recommendations from council officers,
will result in Nuveen owners of St James
Quarter reviving a sisted court action.
A Traffic Regulation Order is required for
vehicular access and councillors voted against
beginning the statutory process to obtaining
that. Meantime nothing has changed on the
ground. There is a makeshift area cordoned off
with planters and a rising barrier manned by W
Hotel staff who continue to allow access for
vehicles. Councillors took the same decision
last October when safety concerns were raised
over introducing vehicles to an area which hadalways been envisaged as a pedestrian zone.
At the time Martin Perry, then Managing
Director of Nuveen, said that councillors had
not been made aware of the facts or had
misunderstood the information that was
presented to them.
He said: “This proposal has passed all safety
audits by road management experts, including
those appointed by The City of
Edinburgh Council, for either two taxis or one
executive coach dropping off at any one time
at a controlled speed of 5mph or less.
“The experimental traffic regulation order is
in place to trial the planning consent, ensuring
that there are no conflicts with the very limited
pedestrian and cycle movements in the area.”Cllr Stephen Jenkinson takes up new roleW Edinburgh