PLANS to slash the only direct bus link between Spateston and Corseford and the Royal Alexandra Hospital (RAH) in Paisley have been branded as ‘farcical’.


During a meeting with Johnstone councillors this week, McGill’s managing director Ralph Roberts is said to have announced communities in Spateston and Corseford would soon be losing the number 20 bus, which runs between Spateston and Whitehaugh in Paisley.


The company has since told The Gazette the bus will still run from Spateston in the early morning, but would be pulled from there and Corseford for the rest of the day and end in Cochrane Castle.

READ MORE: Villagers left without late bus as 307 service to Lochwinnoch axed


It means bus users will not only be left without a direct link to the RAH, but kids living in Spateston and Corseford will have to walk to Johnstone High School, while families using Spateston Nursery will also be forced to walk.


And people living in those communities will also have a tougher time getting to the Johnstone Community Sports Hub and the McMaster Sports Centre.


The announcement comes after the same bus was pulled from the Gallowhill area of Paisley earlier this year.

The Gazette:

Councillor John Hood says people rely on the services 


The number 19 bus was also taken away, leaving residents in Bridge of Weir and Houston without a link to Paisley.


Residents also hit out after the number eight, which ran between Linwood and Johnstone, was pulled.


Tom Wallace, chairman of Johnstone Community Council, said: “There are a lot of people angry about this move. It is just becoming farcical.
“We are very, very concerned about the general reduction of bus services in and around Johnstone at the moment.


“It seems like there won’t be any services at all eventually.”


Councillor John Hood, who represents Johnstone South and Elderslie, said: “It just seems like McGill’s are picking away at services all the time at the moment. People rely on these services and you have got to have them.


“This is going to cause real issues with people getting to the hospital, with kids getting to Johnstone High School and for families using Spateston Nursery.


“There are also aqua aerobics classes in the mornings for pensioners at the sports hub. How are they going to get there?”

READ MORE: Bus bosses slammed after axing village services to Paisley


The move comes after the McGill’s 307 service was axed, which travelled between Johnstone and Lochwinnoch at 11.20pm on Mondays to Thursdays.


Resident Gerald McCoy, who suffers from lung condition Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease, said he relied on the bus to get home after working late in Glasgow.

A McGill's spokesman said: “The curtailment of the service 20 is a direct result of the ever-worsening congestion along the route - this is the price of roads becoming ever more clogged with cars. 

"At a meeting with the Renfrewshire Council Labour Group on Monday, Ralph Roberts explained roadworks, congestion and other disruptions are now at the level where it is costing bus services. 

"This is the new reality in the current economic environment and just like Renfrewshire Council, we are having to find savings to reflect our reduced income. Every bus passenger knows how much congestion and disruption there is on today’s roads and how much longer and unpredictable bus journeys can be compared to even just a few years ago. 

"We need action on roadworks and congestion or this situation is just going to continue.”