Scotsman.com: Weak links’ in public transport criticised

Public transport has too many “weak links” with people finding it difficult to switch from one mode to another, a watchdog said yesterday. Rail passengers cited buses that do not connect with train times, insecure cycle parking and poorly-lit footpaths as barriers to using local train services. Yesterday, cyclist organisations in Scotland agreed with the findings of environment group Transport 2000, and confirmed they still faced many problems on the roads.

Almost 60 per cent of cyclists who took part in the survey revealed they would not feel easy about leaving their bicycles on racks or railings at railway stations.

Almost two-thirds of those polled said there was not a safe cycle route to the station and only 36 per cent felt that the paths to their station were safe, well-lit and free of obstacles.

Stuart Threlfall, of cyclist organisation Spokes, the Lothian Cycle Campaign group, said there was need for improvements to the facilities for cyclists at stations in Edinburgh.

Mr Threlfall said: “I certainly wouldn’t feel that my bicycle was safe at these stations. I know Waverley is undergoing renovation work, but the Haymarket places to park bicycles are outside the stations. I feel that it’s really ironic, considering the stations are on the National Cycle Route 1, so you’d think they’d be better served.”

Spokes is a non-party political voluntary body established in 1977, with more than a 1,000 members. It campaigns for better conditions for cyclists.

Mr Threlfall suggested councils in Scotland could copy Amsterdam’s example, where many get about on bicycles, by introducing bicycle multi-storey cycle parks to ensure their safety.

The report entitled The Weakest Link also found that less than a third of people polled thought bus timetables were accurate, clear and reliable.

Shop worker Jennifer Tait, of Edinburgh, said that where she works in Craigleith on the north of the city, certain buses only run until around 7pm.

Mrs Tait said: “That means there can be a lot of people all getting on the same bus or having to make two bus journeys here or back home.

“The timetables aren’t exactly clear or reliable,” Mrs Tait added. ” You have to give or take about seven or eight minutes.”

Only 12 per cent of people reckoned that bus timetables matched up to train timetables. Transport 2000 said the government had taken steps in the right direction, with station Access for All funding and a commitment in the rail White Paper to introduce station travel plans and a task force to improve cycle provisions at railway stations.

The watchdog group welcomed the government’s decisions.

But spokeswoman Tara Melton said: “Rail passengers need real travel choices. All stations should have good bus links, decent footpaths, and secure bicycle parking must be accessible to all. Our survey shows it isn’t the case for many.”