A group of elderly Dundonians feel as though they’ve been put on a “curfew” ahead of the Xplore bus strike next week.
The residents who use the 23 Woodside Circular service to get into the city centre support the strike but say they feel unseen by McGills.
The strikes are planned for the week beginning June 12 and could last two weeks.
Xplore Dundee announced a revised timetable ahead of the proposed strike, which will follow a Sunday timetable with extra morning services and fewer evening ones.
Services 2, 6 and 23 did not appear on the timetable.
Although there are alternative services, such as number 18 which goes via Clepington Road, elderly residents say walking to a stop which is further away is difficult.
Dundee pensioners ‘confined to houses’ during bus strike
Dorothy Leaburn, 73, said: “It’s ridiculous.
“My feeling is because there’s predominately elderly people here, they’ve put us on a curfew.
“It would be really hard to take shopping from Clepington Road, with the trolley, back home.”
Councillor Lynne Short said: “Willie, who is our driver, he and his colleagues have every right to stand up for their rights.
“My concern is that my constituents and my neighbours will be confined to their houses.
“A lot of them are disabled and feel unseen. They can’t walk to Clepington Road – it’s fairly hilly to get up there.”
“This is not about the strike. This is about how the bus service is treating the community.
“We’ve no longer got a Saturday.
“These people could be in town spending money. This is a plea to the bus company to sit down and get negotiations done so the workers aren’t forced to take action.”
Peter, 79, and Roslyn Malone, 76, are unsure if they can make it to the alternative stop.
Rosyln said: “I could make it. I’m not sure if he’d [Peter] make it up the road. It’s definitely a shame for the drivers.”
Henry McGrath, 83, says that walking to the centre of Dundee can take around 30 minutes.
He said: “I use the buses now and again. Today I’m down for my jab.
“It’s alright to get into town but I’d struggle to come back up.”
Ms Short added: “This was a service for the public and now it’s public service. Willie sends me to check on regulars if they’re not on the bus to see if they’re OK. This is not just a bus.
“We want to encourage older people to be out and about to tackle social isolation.
“They need to work it out with the staff so that people aren’t affected.”
Xplore working to prevent industrial action
A spokesperson for Xplore Dundee said: “We are really sorry to the people of Dundee for this situation and we have this week reached out to ACAS in an effort to try and prevent industrial action taking place.
“We have worked hard to offer a fair 7% pay rise to Xplore Dundee drivers, which has already been accepted across all other areas of McGill’s Bus Group throughout the rest of Scotland. The Xplore Dundee engineering team based at our Dock Street depot have also accepted this offer.
“Should mediation discussions fail and industrial action goes ahead, we are committed to minimising the impact of this strike action as best as we can.
“We have robust plans in place that will allow us to meet the travel needs of 95% of our passengers but recognise that service suspensions will have a greater impact on some customers.”
Conversation