Call to overturn bike ban on bus

A call has been made for buses on Arran to overturn a bike ban and provide racks for cyclists to use.

It comes after Lamlash cyclist Shelli Brennan found herself ‘abandoned’ when she arrived at Brodick to be told she couldn’t take her bike on the bus.

Stagecoach has a policy which does not allow bikes on buses on the island unless in an emergency.

The company providing the bus service on Arran is operated under tender to Strathclyde Partnership for Transport (SPT) which specified the buses it operates on the island are unsuitable for bikes.

But Shelli told the Banner: ‘I’m 62 and was traveling from Rutherglen to Lamlash. I was carrying two trolleys, a kitten and my son’s bicycle.

‘I managed the trains and ferry and then when I got to Brodick, I was told I could not take the bicycle on the bus.

‘The 323, meeting the 3.15pm from Ardrossan, was virtually empty, but I was left stranded with a three-month-old kitten that had been travelling for the past three hours. This is unacceptable.

‘In the city, the buses have racks for bicycles. Arran is a holiday island with a substantial concentration of cyclists, many of whom are not diehard cyclists and could do with the back up of taking a bus if they find they’ve over-stretched themselves or if the weather turns for the worse.

‘They’ve made them wheelchair friendly and they have the space for buggies, but that space can’t be used for a bike, even if the bus is empty, which mine was. They have even changed Arran’s roads to accommodate the new buses. Surely you can provide cycle racks.

‘We invite people to our island to enjoy the outdoors, but unless you’re an Olympian, you wouldn’t be able to cycle to the west side. Or, if you just cycle to Lamlash, odds are that you wouldn’t be able to get back to Brodick because of the steep incline. We often see cyclists putting themselves at risk, wobbling across the road or walking their bikes up the hill. The road is very twisty and narrow at one point, making it impassable for vehicles. If the buses helped, it would open up the island to even more access and encourage more people to take up healthy sports.’

A spokesman for Stagecoach said: ‘Unfortunately, we do have a policy that we cannot take bicycles on buses on Arran as there is not space for them without blocking the aisle. Only on extreme occasions, where our drivers may come across an injured cyclist, can we consider helping to take a bicycle on a bus.

‘We regret the inconvenience which caused the complainer on the day.’