“We need your help” was the key message which emerged from a public meeting at The Museum on Main Street last Thursday (January 28), which Better Buses Barrhead (BBB) held to share their progress.

The public meeting in Barrhead last week (Image: Newsquest)

Around 50 people packed out the venue, including residents, Council Leader Owen O’Donnell, Councillors Julie Ann McHale and Andrew Anderson, and representatives from East Renfrewshire Council (ERC), Scottish Passenger Transport (SPT) and the office of Blair McDougall MP.

Councillor Julie Ann McHale was among those in attendance at the meeting (Image: Supplied)

The group, who plan to run a pilot before the summer, have secured the use of a 16-seater council bus for the trial and have worked with SPT to develop a route around the town.

A map of the proposed route (Image: Newsquest)

Rena McGuire BEM, group member, told the audience: “ERC has stepped up to the plate. We have secured a 16-seater bus.

“We have a route mapped out that actually goes where people need to go, from Balgray Station right through the heart of our schemes.

“We have gone from a group of frustrated residents at a kitchen table to a constituted group aiming to run a bus service later this year.

“When that pilot bus pulls up at the first stop it won’t just be a vehicle, it will be a symbol of what happens when a community refuses to be left behind.”

Rena McGuire BEM (Image: Newsquest)

“We aren’t there yet though and there is a lot of work to ensure a better bus will be winding its way around Barrhead’s streets for years to come,” she added.

“We need volunteers, we need drivers, and most importantly, we need you to keep using your voices.”

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Better Buses Barrhead chair Mandy Smith, Rena McGuire BEM and Claire McKechnie during a group visit to another community transport group (Image: Newsquest)

Her sentiments were echoed by fellow group member Claire McKechnie who also addressed the crowd and explained that they need knowledge and opinions on the proposed route, including the suitability and practicality of the streets included.

“Our group meets every Thursday at 10am at the Dunterlie Resource Centre and we need your help,” she added.

“We need your knowledge and opinions on the route.

“We need people to hand out leaflets and spread the word.”

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The public meeting in Barrhead last week (Image: Newsquest)

Indeed, spreading the word will be key to the success of the pilot because the group will need as many people as possible to make use of the bus to show its need to backers and help ensure the trial progresses to an established service.

If this goal is reached, it will be not a day too soon for residents, such as those in Springhill who have never had a bus service.

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The public meeting was held at The Museum on Main Street (Image: Newsquest)

As one resident at the meeting said: “I’ve lived in Springhill for 50 years and there has never been a bus service there.

“Numerous residents are stranded. We are desperate up there and we are isolated.”

The public meeting in Barrhead last week (Image: Newsquest)

The establishment of a circular service would also be music to the ears of those who previously used the 52, a lifeline service, which made 16 stops in the town and was axed in May 2023, leaving many residents devastated.

The axed 52 circular which was withdrawn in May 2023 by McGill’s (Image: Newsquest)

It was this decision, which McGill’s attributed to reasons such as the pandemic resulting in changes to how and when people travel, which led to residents to take action and form BBB.

The public meeting was held in Barrhead last week (Image: Newsquest)

Rena, who campaigned to save the 52, told the audience: “Working with the Corra Foundation, we created a survey and we knocked on doors.

“We listened to women who couldn’t get their weans to school on time. We talked to pensioners who felt like prisoners in their own living rooms.

“When we published that ‘We Need Our Bus!’ report in August 2024, the numbers were staggering – 90% of us were struggling.

“That report was a huge step forward. It proved that our bus wasn’t a luxury, it was a lifeline’.”

Neill Patton from the Corra Foundation, Rena McGuire BEM and Lara Henderson from the Community Transport Association with the “We Need Our Bus!” report (Image: Newsquest)

As part of their push towards establishing a community bus, the group have also visited other community transport groups in Glenfarg, Glasgow and Strathaven to seek advice and learn from their experience.  

The group visited Climate Action Strathaven who run the very successful 3C service (Image: Newsquest)

Anne Marie Kennedy, who has run The Wee Red Bus in Barrhead since 2000, also came along to a group meeting to provide information.

Over the years, Anne Marie’s community transport scheme has enabled older people to access health services and transported patients to the Beatson West of Scotland Cancer Centre.  

Council leader Owen O’Donnell (Image: Supplied)

Following the public meeting last week, Cllr O’Donnell praised BBB and said it was “good to see the progress and momentum built by the campaign” since he met with the group before Christmas. 

“Also delighted to see our council officers actively supporting the development of the project,” he added. 

“Community transport schemes such as this will only get off the ground and be successful if the whole community gets behind it so I would urge as many people as possible to get involved and support the campaign in any way they can.”

To keep up to date with the group’s progress click here.