With most schools reopening on Wednesday (18 August), Lothian has put some information together for bus services including safe travel advice as children and young people prepare to head back to the classroom.

Bus Services

The Service 42 will operate Monday to Saturday with additional journeys between North Junction Street and Duddingston (Holyrood High School).

The Service 45 will be returning Monday to Friday during school term between Riccarton Campus and Forrest Road.

The dedicated EastCoastBuses’ School Services 125, 126, 127 and 128 will also return from Wednesday:

• Service 125 – Musselburgh to North Berwick High School via Longniddry, Aberlady and Gullane.
• Service 126 – Aberlady to North Berwick High School via Luffness Mains and Gullane.
• Service 127 – Longniddry to North Berwick High School via Drem, Fenton Barns and Dirleton.
• Service 128 – Longniddry to Preston Lodge High School.

Safe Travel

At Lothian, we’ve also been sharing our recommended steps for safe travel with our customers to help them take every necessary precaution to protect themselves and our driving colleagues. That goes for our young customers, too – we want to make sure children and young people travelling to school can be confident they’re keeping themselves and others safe.

With that in mind, here are our top tips for safe school travel.

1. Wash your hands or use sanitiser before boarding the bus.
2. It remains mandatory for customers over the age of 12 to wear face coverings for the duration of their journey (covering your nose and mouth) while on our services unless exempt.
3. Allow any customers to leave the bus first before boarding one at a time, giving space to other customers.
4. If you don’t have a Junior or Student Ridacard, consider paying by contactless if you can (read more on this below) or by using Child CitySingles (you can purchase these through our online shop or in-person from our TravelHubs. Did you know? From 31 January 2022, all residents under the age of 22 in Scotland are eligible for free travel – for more information visit: Free bus travel for under-22s (transport.gov.scot).
5. Leave windows open to let fresh air circulate throughout the vehicle.
6. When leaving the bus, please use hand sanitiser or wash your hands thoroughly when you arrive at school or home.
7. Our drivers are happy to help – please follow any instructions from them and don’t forget to let them know if you have any concerns.

We know this is an anxious time for parents and guardians, but you can be confident you are doing everything necessary to keep your child safe by following the above guidance.

If you’ve got any questions or queries, please get in touch with us on Twitter, Facebook or Instagram, or by emailing our Customer Service team at [email protected] – we’re here to help.

Contactless

Contactless is available for child tickets! Even if your child doesn’t have their own contactless bank card or device, there are a number of prepaid contactless cards children and young people can use to pay, such as The Rooster Card (other products are also available).

When your child boards they just need to:

• Ask the driver for a child ticket and state they wish to pay by contactless.
• Wait for the driver to instruct them to tap their card/device.
• If successful, a paper child ticket will be printed.