Bus stop is rejected over safety concerns
Requests to create an official bus stop on a busy 50 mph road stretch have been knocked back over road safety concerns.
Bus firm Stagecoach had followed up on a request to carry out a site visit for a proposed stop at Hollybush Inn after a bus user called for improvement last year.
Stranded Suzanne Anderson, 55, hit out at Stagecoach bosses in December after she was left walking along a dangerous road when a driver failed to stop at Hollybush Inn.
Suzanne, of Patna, insisted the stop had always been a ‘ traditional unofficial stop’ but the bus firm confirmed this was not the casenor had it been for ‘ many years’.
She appealed to Stagecoach to implement an official stop after she left to walk along the busy 50 mph zone A713 to the next bus stop.
Suzanne previously told the Post: “It’s always been a traditional unofficial stop.
“I then had to walk along a dangerous road to another stop to catch a bus.
“They come flying along that road at some speed. Prevention is better than a cure. If that happens to someone else and they had to walk along the road and a lorry comes thundering down- who knows what could happen.”
Despite Stagecoach stating Hollybush Inn is not a registered stop, the firm raised the request to install an official one with transport agency SPT. And with checks carried out, the unanimous decision was that the location is unsuitable for an official stop.
A Stagecoach West Scotland spokensman said: “Following on from the information provided by the Ayrshire Post on December 27 in relation to a customer trying to board one of our services at the Hollybush Inn, we can advise that a site visit has been carried out by representatives of SPT ( Strathclyde Partnership for Transport) and East Ayrshire Council.
“It has been agreed that the suggested location is unsuitable for bus stops, due to road safety concerns and the lack of suitable footways. The location of bus stops is decided jointly by representatives of SPT and East Ayrshire Council Roads department with the prime considerations in assessing the suitability of sites being road and pedestrian safety.”