Lothian Group discussion (Lothian City, Lothian Country Bus and East Coast Buses)

[FlybeDash8Q400]

More registrations are showing. There is a new 39 being added from Polton Mill to Dalkeith Heights via Bonnyrigg, Hopefield, Hardengreen, Dalkeith.
My guess is that this is a mixed 46/139 replacement with the Rosewell stretch moving to the 31.
However I don't think this would solve anything for Dalkeith Campus?

I’m guessing this will be half hourly and therefore that’s not the sensible use of ECB resources. Should just about be doable with 2 buses if Tesco isn’t served. Would expect 7900’s to run this.

Perhaps it’ll just be associated school trips that will run into the campus. Aside from that the campus doesn’t really need a service. The schools 46 will probably transfer to this and start from the campus anyway. Alternatively it could be easily added to the 31.

Hopefully the 39 and 140/141 are coordinated to offer an every 15 minutes service between Dalkeith and Bonnyrigg Toll. Else I can see the 39 being fresh air.

 

[stevenedin]

I can see the 39 being operated by Marine not East Coast Buses using some of the buses that the 46 withdrawal frees up.

 

[LothianBusesPh]

I can see the 39 being operated by Marine not East Coast Buses using some of the buses that the 46 withdrawal frees up.

If it was ECB then it wouldn’t be renumbered.

 

[paravostok]

I wonder if it’s actually a half hourly 72. It would be nice if the 73 and 74 were tidied up as well.

a sunday service 73 would be great

 

[Bus9120UK]

I’m guessing this will be half hourly and therefore that’s not the sensible use of ECB resources. Should just about be doable with 2 buses if Tesco isn’t served. Would expect 7900’s to run this.

Perhaps it’ll just be associated school trips that will run into the campus. Aside from that the campus doesn’t really need a service. The schools 46 will probably transfer to this and start from the campus anyway. Alternatively it could be easily added to the 31.

Hopefully the 39 and 140/141 are coordinated to offer an every 15 minutes service between Dalkeith and Bonnyrigg Toll. Else I can see the 39 being fresh air.

The registrations have been approved which has allowed me to export the csv file and check further details.

The 39 is marked as hourly, Mon-Sat.

The 12, 22/A, 31, X31, X33, X47, 48 and 106 are marked as variation to route.

 

[FlybeDash8Q400]

The registrations have been approved which has allowed me to export the csv file and check further details.

The 39 is marked as hourly, Mon-Sat.

The 12, 22/A, 31, X31, X33, X47, 48 and 106 are marked as variation to route.

Some interesting stuff there. Curious to see what they will be.

48 must be diverting into Queen Margaret. The others seem less obvious bar the 31 which we know is going to Rosewell. X31 curtailed to Hopefield?

 

[paul0762]

Some interesting stuff there. Curious to see what they will be.

48 must be diverting into Queen Margaret. The others seem less obvious bar the 31 which we know is going to Rosewell. X31 curtailed to Hopefield

I’m new to looking at bus registrations but from this info I can’t see rosewell on it ? Am I looking in the right place.

 

[Bus9120UK]

View attachment 196291I’m new to looking at bus registrations but from this info I can’t see rosewell on it ? Am I looking in the right place.

The start/finish point information isn't being updated so you can't trust it.

The CSV export (https://www.vehicle-operator-licens...ch/find-registered-local-bus-services/browse/ -> Go to View, then Scotland, 20 1 2026 and export as CSV) shows the 31 as "Variation to route[,] bus stop/stopping places[,] stopping arrangements and timetable." Given the withdrawal of the 46 and the new 39 not serving Rosewell, it implies the 31 will go into Rosewell instead. This aligns with what people have suggested above.

Of course we won't know for certain until these changes are published which should be by Monday anyway.

 

[FlybeDash8Q400]

The start/finish point information isn't being updated so you can't trust it.

I noticed the 15 is finally accurate with Start/End Points. Only took 6 years!

 

[CSB0241]

More registrations are showing. There is a new 39 being added from Polton Mill to Dalkeith Heights via Bonnyrigg, Hopefield, Hardengreen, Dalkeith.
My guess is that this is a mixed 46/139 replacement with the Rosewell stretch moving to the 31.
However I don't think this would solve anything for Dalkeith Campus?

Maybe a bit of a wild take but hypothetically, what if all 31s were rerouted to run the same route into Hopefield, with the journeys that’ll presumably be running to Rosewell instead following the X31 route back out of Hopefield & along? The only reason I’m not sure that they’d actually do it is since it’d leave Polton without a bus into the city centre (unless you rerouted the X31 to curtail at Polton Mill).

The registrations have been approved which has allowed me to export the csv file and check further details.

The 39 is marked as hourly, Mon-Sat.

Oh, well, so much for my argument, going from 4 buses per hour through Polton to 1 bus per hour is dim.

The 12, 22/A, 31, X31, X33, X47, 48 and 106 are marked as variation to route.

Going off of this then, if I had to guess for each of these, I would say;

• 12 & 22 swap routes in South Gyle, with the 12 serving South Gyle Mains & the 22 serving South Gyle Trade Estate. 22A withdrawn.
• 31 Extended to Rosewell (realistically Polton Mill runs so that the terminus at Cameron Crescent doesn’t get completely clogged, though there is part of me that’s not fully willing to rule out my above suggestion just yet).
• X31 curtailed to either Polton Mill or Hopefield.
• X33… yeah I’ve got nothing - best I can think of is maybe a change of terminus in Edinburgh city centre.
• X47 extended into West Craigs estate.
• 48 rerouted to serve Queen Margaret University - potentially via the A1 so that it could use deckers for capacity reasons, though I am in no way willing to die on that hill.
• 106 curtailed to Fort Kinnaird.

 

[FlybeDash8Q400]

The X31 and X33 are probably just changes to stopping points. These buses interwork with University extras. They could curtail the X31 to Hopefield but I really don’t see the benefit of this.

X47 to East Craigs presumably. Would allow them to put the buses onto the 31 directly with no dead run.

 

[Bus9120UK]

Looks like the X6 is being withdrawn as well.

 

[FlybeDash8Q400]

Looks like the X6 is being withdrawn as well.

I wonder if the 106 will be going up to half hourly, but not running to the city and Western General.

 

[ScotRail158725]

Looks like the X6 is being withdrawn as well.

Not surprising at all. Wonder what they’ll do with the 106

 

[Busman757]

Maybe a bit of a wild take but hypothetically, what if all 31s were rerouted to run the same route into Hopefield, with the journeys that’ll presumably be running to Rosewell instead following the X31 route back out of Hopefield & along? The only reason I’m not sure that they’d actually do it is since it’d leave Polton without a bus into the city centre (unless you rerouted the X31 to curtail at Polton Mill).


Oh, well, so much for my argument, going from 4 buses per hour through Polton to 1 bus per hour is dim.


Going off of this then, if I had to guess for each of these, I would say;

• 12 & 22 swap routes in South Gyle, with the 12 serving South Gyle Mains & the 22 serving South Gyle Trade Estate. 22A withdrawn.
• 31 Extended to Rosewell (realistically Polton Mill runs so that the terminus at Cameron Crescent doesn’t get completely clogged, though there is part of me that’s not fully willing to rule out my above suggestion just yet).
• X31 curtailed to either Polton Mill or Hopefield.
• X33… yeah I’ve got nothing - best I can think of is maybe a change of terminus in Edinburgh city centre.
• X47 extended into West Craigs estate.
• 48 rerouted to serve Queen Margaret University - potentially via the A1 so that it could use deckers for capacity reasons, though I am in no way willing to die on that hill.
• 106 curtailed to Fort Kinnaird.

From what I’ve heard, X33 will go Loanhead, Bonnyrigg, Newtongrange then normal route to the city.

 

[Edirim]

From what I’ve heard, X33 will go Loanhead, Bonnyrigg, Newtongrange then normal route to the city.

That cant be right surely. Makes no sense

 

[CSB0241]

From what I’ve heard, X33 will go Loanhead, Bonnyrigg, Newtongrange then normal route to the city.

That cant be right surely. Makes no sense

Exactly. Sounds like what you’ve heard is complete tripe - most Lothian peak expresses follow the same/similar routes to their normal daytime counterparts. The X33’s a bit of a complicated one since it’s more so closer to the 48 than the 33 nowadays, but at the same time, running to Newtongrange via Loanhead & Bonnyrigg feels absurd.

And sure Loanhead is a large town, but at the same time unless it went past the IKEA at Straiton & along Dryden Terrace (or hell, maybe even Niven’s Knowe Road), it would only serve a very small portion of Loanhead that the 37 doesn’t serve (a bus which, mind you, still provides 4 buses per hour into Edinburgh).

 

[overthewater]

Going by Vosa today the X6 might be staying?

• PM1050765/67 Variation​

  EAST COAST BUSES LIMITED
  Route: Western General Hospital, Edinburgh to Haddington High Street via The Jewel, Wallyford, Tranent, Macmerry
  Service number: X6
  Service type: Limited Stop
  Effective date: 22 Jan 2026
• 
  

• PM1050765/67 Cancelled​

  EAST COAST BUSES LIMITED
  Route: Western General Hospital, Edinburgh to Haddington High Street via The Jewel, Wallyford, Tranent, Macmerry
  Service number: X6
  Service type: Limited Stop
  Effective date: 22 Feb 2026

 

[FlybeDash8Q400]

Going by Vosa today the X6 might be staying?

• PM1050765/67 Variation​

  EAST COAST BUSES LIMITED
  Route: Western General Hospital, Edinburgh to Haddington High Street via The Jewel, Wallyford, Tranent, Macmerry
  Service number: X6
  Service type: Limited Stop
  Effective date: 22 Jan 2026
• 
  

• PM1050765/67 Cancelled​

  EAST COAST BUSES LIMITED
  Route: Western General Hospital, Edinburgh to Haddington High Street via The Jewel, Wallyford, Tranent, Macmerry
  Service number: X6
  Service type: Limited Stop
  Effective date: 22 Feb 2026

The first one is dated 22nd Jan.

 

[CSB0241]

Going by Vosa today the X6 might be staying?

• PM1050765/67 Variation​

  EAST COAST BUSES LIMITED
  Route: Western General Hospital, Edinburgh to Haddington High Street via The Jewel, Wallyford, Tranent, Macmerry
  Service number: X6
  Service type: Limited Stop
  Effective date: 22 Jan 2026
• 
  

• PM1050765/67 Cancelled​

  EAST COAST BUSES LIMITED
  Route: Western General Hospital, Edinburgh to Haddington High Street via The Jewel, Wallyford, Tranent, Macmerry
  Service number: X6
  Service type: Limited Stop
  Effective date: 22 Feb 2026

I’ve just clicked the first link that states it’s just a variation & it’s saying the page can’t be found so I think it sadly getting axed.

What a decline the X6 has had over the past year, going from being one of the main bus routes through East Lothian, to just becoming a peak time service, to now being completely withdrawn. I will agree that along the Tranent-Haddington corridor it was more frequent then it really should’ve been considering the existence of the 106 & Prentice 108 also running hourly along that corridor (I think running hourly but interworking with a reduced X4 to make a half hourly service from Wallyford to Edinburgh would be much better than what we’ve ended up), but the move to basically completely replace the X6 with the X4 outside of peak times was certainly not the greatest change they’ve made in the past ten or so years.

 

[ScotRail158725]

Exactly. Sounds like what you’ve heard is complete tripe -

Sounds like the sort of thing people like you would suggest on this very forum!

I’ve just clicked the first link that states it’s just a variation & it’s saying the page can’t be found so I think it sadly getting axed.

What a decline the X6 has had over the past year, going from being one of the main bus routes through East Lothian, to just becoming a peak time service, to now being completely withdrawn. I will agree that along the Tranent-Haddington corridor it was more frequent then it really should’ve been considering the existence of the 106 & Prentice 108 also running hourly along that corridor (I think running hourly but interworking with a reduced X4 to make a half hourly service from Wallyford to Edinburgh would be much better than what we’ve ended up), but the move to basically completely replace the X6 with the X4 outside of peak times was certainly not the greatest change they’ve made in the past ten or so years.

The whole X4/X6 changes were an utter farce from the very start. Although i feel as though the changes in that area were doomed regardless of what they done

 

[FlybeDash8Q400]

If you break down the idea with the X33. It’s a ridiculous idea, but not totally impossible. Effectively you’d be reducing the dead run, that’s all. Not necessarily designed to pick up anybody.

 

[Scotrail88]

Unlike Lothian to be slow with the news article - is it due to being bad news?

 

[FlybeDash8Q400]

Unlike Lothian to be slow with the news article - is it due to being bad news?

I wouldn’t expect an announcement until next week. Generally the 4 week marker is the rough point for it. These registrations have come through late presumably due to Christmas shutdown for most Government sectors.

 

[CSB0241]

Unlike Lothian to be slow with the news article - is it due to being bad news?

I wouldn’t expect an announcement until next week. Generally the 4 week marker is the rough point for it. These registrations have come through late presumably due to Christmas shutdown for most Government sectors.

All the service changes last year were announced on a Monday so I’m gonna make an educated guess & say that they’ll announce the changes on Monday again.

 

[ScotRail158725]

If you break down the idea with the X33. It’s a ridiculous idea, but not totally impossible. Effectively you’d be reducing the dead run, that’s all. Not necessarily designed to pick up anybody.

Yeah, especially from Longstone

 

[atfd26]

Have anymore of the Ex London's been confirmed at new buyers. And are 1005-1022 being sold or awaiting service changes

 

[Bus9120UK]

Have anymore of the Ex London's been confirmed at new buyers. And are 1005-1022 being sold or awaiting service changes

1021 and 1022 are being reinstated with these changes. 1022 is already out.
Not sure what the situation is with 1005-1020.

 

[FlybeDash8Q400]

1021 and 1022 are being reinstated with these changes. 1022 is already out.
Not sure what the situation is with 1005-1020.

So to clarify 1022 has allowed 393 to move to Central?

 

[Flip Lo]

Surprised to see that 940 has been moved to Country, would've thought that this was the donor bus.