Eastern Scottish Fares Review April 2023

We’re making some changes to Eastern Scottish bus tickets from Monday 3 April 2023 – but we’ll still offer great value so that you can spend as little as possible for unlimited travel across West Lothian and Edinburgh.

• Make your money go further with simplified ticket zones

• Value made easy with a streamlined product range

• Extra savings and flexibility with some brand-new tickets

What’s happening and why?

Since the start of the Covid pandemic in 2020, bus companies have received funding from the Scottish Government that has helped to keep services running. Passenger numbers plummeted to just 10% of ‘normal’ levels during the first lockdown and haven't yet fully recovered (due to behavioural changes over the last three years, such as working from home and shopping online).

That funding support will expire at the end of March – at the same time as inflationary pressures making buses more expensive to run. We’re also investing millions in transforming our fleet to improve the comfort and quality of your journey, as well as looking after the environment. Plus, we’re giving our staff a well-earned pay increase after seeing us through some difficult times in recent years (and to boost our driver recruitment campaign, too).

Despite these rising costs, our fares have been frozen since 2019. That’s why we’ve had to review our prices: so that we can continue to cover those essential costs of delivering your local bus services. We’ve likewise taken the opportunity to simplify ticket zones and streamline our product range – making it easier than ever to navigate our network. And finally, we’re offering extra savings and flexibility with some brand-new tickets which are ideal for solo, group or family leisure activities.

Simplified ticket zones

We're replacing the current zone structure and with a new set of simpler zones. This includes swapping

alphabetical codes with geographical names which are easier to understand.

• The new ‘West Lothian’ zone will replace legacy zone L

• The new ‘Edinburgh’ zone will replace legacy zone M

• And the new ‘Eastern Scottish’ zone will replace legacy combined zone L+M

A map showing how these new zones will look is available here

Brand-new tickets

Heading out with friends or family? Up to five people (of any age) can travel together all day with a brand-new GroupSaver ticket – from as little as £2.20 per person.

If you’re just going out as a pair, the brand-new DuoSaver knocks 25% off the cost you’d otherwise pay for a second DaySaver.

Lastly, if you’re meeting up with people for dinner, drinks or a movie, a brand-new EveningSaver will be 20% cheaper than a DaySaver.

New ticket prices

We've listed the new prices for all our tickets below. Don’t forget: you can travel more and spend less in the long-run when you choose a multi-journey ticket.

Tickets can be bought on-bus using cash or contactless, and mTickets are available in the McGill’s Scotland East app.

Finally: don’t forget that young people (aged 5-21) living in Scotland are eligible for free bus travel with a valid NEC card. If you haven’t already, make sure to apply (either for yourself or on behalf of your child) through your local council.