Edinburgh traffic wardens to ride Lothian Buses services to target inconsiderate drivers in bus lanes

Trial scheme gets underway next week in a bid to improve bus reliability

A crackdown on drivers parking in bus lanes across Edinburgh will see traffic wardens travel on local services to target city hot spots.

From Tuesday, May 9, parking attendants will travel on specially selected Lothian Buses routes which are particularly affected by vehicles blocking bus lanes. They will be able to disembark buses to move on or issue parking tickets to any drivers breaking the rules and then board the next bus on the same route. The initiative, being carried out in partnership with Lothian Buses, aims to improve bus reliability and journey times by reducing disruption to services caused by incorrectly parked vehicles. In turn it is hoped this will support and encourage sustainable, low carbon travel by public transport.

Councillor Scott Arthur, transport and environment convener, believes action such as this trial will help encourage more people in Edinburgh to use public transport. He said: “We already have an excellent bus service in Edinburgh, relied on by many, and our bus lanes are really important to making sure services can run smoothly and on time, especially during peak hours.

Traffic wardens in Edinburgh are set to ride city buses to target inconsiderate drivers blocking bus lanes.

“This trial, in partnership with Lothian Buses, will let parking attendants target hot spots in real time, where drivers continue to park inconsiderately. We’ll continue monitoring its effectiveness to make sure we’re focusing on the right areas. Encouraging and supporting travel by sustainable, reliable public transport is crucial to our net zero 2030 aspirations, as well as helping to reduce congestion, improve air quality and provide accessible transport for everyone.”

Willie Hamilton, operations director at Lothian Buses, said: “Lothian is committed to providing a safe, reliable and trusted service across Edinburgh and the Lothians. As we look to encourage the use of public transport in support of the Scottish Government and The City of Edinburgh Council’s wider environmental goals, it is important that we work with partners across the city on effective ways to ensure bus priority measures are followed which will enhance our ability to provide a consistently reliable standard of service for our customers.”