Following a public inquiry held in Edinburgh, the current Traffic
Commissioner for Scotland, Richard Turfitt, has issued a decision
on the operator licences held by McGill's Scotland East Ltd and
Midland Bluebird Ltd, trading as McGill's Midland Bluebird.
The inquiry was convened to consider the operators' compliance
with licence undertakings, including the punctuality of bus
services, vehicle maintenance, driver defect reporting, and
overall transport management systems.
Evidence was also considered from Bus Users Scotland, which
highlighted concerns about punctuality and reliability of
services operated by both companies.
The Commissioner noted that passenger complaints and monitoring
data indicated that services were not consistently running to
schedule, undermining public confidence and potentially breaching
licence undertakings.
The inquiry explored whether the operators had failed to operate
services as registered, and whether they had taken sufficient
steps to address punctuality issues.
The Commissioner found that both companies had failed to meet the
expected standards of compliance. Specific issues included
inadequate systems for reporting and rectifying vehicle defects
and failures in ensuring vehicles were roadworthy and maintained
in accordance with the declared inspection intervals.
There were also weaknesses in the oversight provided by the
Transport Managers. On one notable occasion, a bus caught fire
whilst in operation. The vehicles had been purchased from another
large operator in Scotland.
Despite these shortcomings, the Commissioner acknowledged that
both operators had taken steps to improve compliance, including
investment in new systems and personnel changes.
The Commissioner indicated that deterrent action was required to
achieve the aims of the statute and to ensure that levels of
service match the expectations of the travelling public in
Scotland. McGill's Bluebird Ltd was ordered to pay a penalty of
£29,700 for failing to operate services in accordance with
registered timetables, now in that name. This was paid to
Scottish Ministers under section 39 of the Transport (Scotland)
Act 2001.
Commissioner Turfitt said “I make very clear that these operators
can no longer use the poor state of vehicles as an excuse for
failing to meet published timetables. Both are given a final
warning. I find the repute of each entity to be severely
tarnished by the finding of maintenance issues identified at the
hearing… Any further reports are likely to result in
consideration of more extensive intervention. I also take account
of the previous reports of poor punctuality.”
The Transport Managers involved were reminded of their statutory
duties and the importance of proactive oversight.
The Commissioner directed that future operations will be closely
monitored, and any further failings may result in more serious
regulatory action.
For full details of the decision, visit the
Traffic Commissioner
Regulatory Decisions page
