BUS users in Scotland have just three weeks left to respond to a consultation calling for a shake-up of how services are run.

The Member's Bill, put forward by former Scottish Labour leader and East Lothian MSP Iain Gray, is calling for a reform of the bus industry which would hand greater control for setting routes and fares back to transport authorities, and fines for operators who cancelled unprofitable services.

Members of the public, bus companies and any other interested parties have until three weeks today -August 30 - to respond.

It is the second time in less than four years that proposals to re-regulate buses in Scotland have come up in Parliament, with a previous bill brought forward by Labour MSP Charlie Gordon failing to win cross-party support in 2010.

Most people in the industry, as well as those watching keenly from the sidelines, don't hold out much hope that Mr Gray's attempt to turn back the clock on deregulation will have much more success - although there is a sense that something needs to change. The bus is Scotland's most used form of public transport, but arguably the most neglected.

According to Confederation of Public Transport (Scotland), the subsidy per rail passenger is 21 times greater than for bus passengers, even though 86% of journeys are made by bus and some 30% of households in Scotland have no access to a car.

The latest bill was set up after First Bus axed 20 routes in East Lothian and Midlothian, blaming lack of Government support and rising fuel costs, while another six routes in Falkirk were withdrawn after local government support was cut.

The Bill, which also has the backing of long-time Glasgow bus campaigner and Green MSP Patrick Harvie, calls for profitable and non-profitable (but socially important) routes to be "bundled" together and offered up to operators as a single franchise, with the Traffic Commissioner imposing financial penalties if operators break the terms of the agreement.

More powers would also be handed back to regional transport authorities, such as SPT, to set routes, fares, and a minimum level of service.

It isn't so far-fetched. In London, buses were privatised but not deregulated, allowing Transport for London to control fares and services for buses in the capital - though only thanks to a £3bn annual subsidy from the UK Government.

Perhaps a better example lies closer to home. Lothian Buses operates the largest publicly-owned bus company in Britain, running 70 routes in Edinburgh, East Lothian and Midlothian with profits returned to Edinburgh City Council - the major shareholder - in the form of dividends.

It probably comes as no surprise then that Glaswegians visiting the capital bemoan the comparisons between Edinburgh's regular, reliable and affordable services in comparison to the often erratic timetabling and punctuality of Scotland's second city where routes are carved up between a handful of private operators.

Iain Gray's Bill may not get the parliamentary support it needs, but at least it has opened the door to a much-needed debate.