Midlothian mum says supermarket shop has become a 'two hour trip' after bus service scrapped

A mum from Poltonhall has described how getting around with children and seeing her relatives has become an “absolute nightmare” since a key bus route in Midlothian was scrapped earlier this year.

Allison Brunton, who had to leave her job as a carer two years ago to look after her son, said the decision to withdraw the 46 service - which ran from Rosewell to Musselburgh via the Royal Infirmary and Dalkeith - has uprooted her day-to-day life and routines.

The 30-year-old said the move had disproportionately impacted residents like her, who are on benefits or who can’t afford to buy a car, as well as elderly and disabled people in the area.

Allison Brunton, 30, with her three-year-old son | Supplied

As part of the changes, Lothian Buses partially replaced the 46 with the service 39, which runs from Polton to Bonnyrigg and Dalkeith, and stops at the Tesco superstore at Hardengreen.

But unlike the 46, the 39 service only runs once an hour, and does not run on a Sunday.

Allison said the inconvenience of the bus times have doubled the time it takes to make simple journeys, such as getting to Tesco to do her weekly shop.

“I used to nip to Tesco to get nappies and baby formula and it took me under an hour,” she said. “But with the new buses it can now take me two hours.

“The last time I did it I just missed the bus after coming out the shop, meaning I had to wait a whole hour until the next one.”

This article is part of our A Lifeline Lost series, which explores the impact the loss of the 46 bus service has had on residents | Iconic

Allison said the smaller shops in Bonnyrigg are much more expensive and do not stock the baby products she needs.

As a result, she now takes the bus all the way to Cameron Toll to go to Lidl or Aldi, instead of the Tesco less than two miles from her house.

The 30-year-old said she is also concerned about access to the Midlothian Community Hospital becoming more difficult for residents in Poltonhall and Rosewell.

She had to take her three-year-old son to the hospital nearly ten times last year due to tonsillitis, and said she “couldn’t imagine” doing the journey now with children in tow, which would require taking two buses or having to walk the distance.

Several of Allison’s relatives live elsewhere in Midlothian, but she says she now feels “cut off” from them since the changes were introduced.

“I’ve hardly seen my brother since the buses have changed,” she said. “He stays in Gorebridge and would get the bus to Tesco before switching to the 46, which came roughly every half an hour.

“Now he has to go to Cameron Toll to swap over.”

She continued: “It’s forced people to change their whole lives and routines, and is isolating them from their families.”

Lothian Buses said the changes brought in earlier this year followed a detailed analysis of customer usage and travel patterns, and reflected demands from residents in Rosewell for a direct service into Edinburgh.

The company said since 2023 passenger numbers on the service 46 had not reached the levels required to sustain the service long-term, and claimed demand is not high enough to sustain both a service into Edinburgh and a local Midlothian service.

A spokesperson said: “Lothian is committed to delivering reliable, accessible and cost-effective bus services across Edinburgh and the Lothians.

“As a wholly commercial operator, our decision to implement network changes is driven by detailed analysis of data and evolving travel patterns, helping to ensure our services remain viable.

"We will continue to monitor the revised services and listen to community feedback as we consider further improvements to connectivity across the wider bus network."

You can read our explainer about how recent bus changes are affecting residents in Midlothian here.