I was hugely frustrated to recently receive an e-mail from First Bus to confirm that there would be a further reduction of bus services in Eaglesham on a temporary basis.
In the second half of 2016, First Glasgow took the decision to permanently remove the Polnoon Street and Montgomery Street legs from the 4A bus route in Eaglesham and this proved to be controversial among many people living in the area.
I met with First Bus bosses not long after the changes had taken effect to emphasise the hugely negative impact it would have on local residents and particularly for elderly people who now have to negotiate the very steep hill at Polnoon Street on foot.
Sadly, the bus company did not agree to reinstate the Polnoon Street and Montgomery Street stops of the 4A and bus service provision in Eaglesham for local people has been diminished ever since.
Now at the beginning of August, First Bus have made temporary changes to services in the Greater Glasgow area including Eaglesham.
The bus route amendments mean that instead of running twice hourly, the 4A is now only set to service Eaglesham once per hour during the day from Monday to Saturday.
The 4A bus service covers Glasgow Road, Gilmour Street, Strathaven Road, Hill Drive and Brownmuir Avenue and it is a vital service for local people particularly because Eaglesham is generally less well served by public transport than other parts of East Renfrewshire.
The 4A also provides a key link from Eaglesham to Clarkston and further afield.
The plans to cut the 4A by reducing the frequency of the service to once per hour, daytime is a matter of some disappointment and will further reduce public transportation options for residents.
I have written to First Glasgow to urge a re-think of this decision and for the company to retain the current service provision of a twice per hour 4A bus service.
Meanwhile, the latest statistics on drug deaths in Scotland confirmed the heart-breaking news that 1,339 individuals lost their lives to drug misuse in 2020.
The most recent data shows that for the seventh year in a row, drug deaths have peaked.
Scotland’s drug deaths rate is near to four times higher than any other nation in Europe and is five times worse than in England or Wales.
If people are from a poorer area then this means they are eighteen times more likely to die because of drugs.
To address this deeply troubling situation, Scottish Conservatives have proposed a Right to Recovery Bill.
This proposal has been developed with recovery and treatment experts and it would enshrine in law that everyone is able to gain access to the treatment that they need, including a residential rehabilitation place.
The Right to Recovery Bill has been backed by seven recovery organisations and what it would do is to cut through the broken treatment system and save lives.
Drug death rates in Scotland is a national shame and bold action is required now.