Glaswegian revellers and workers will be forced to find alternative modes of transport or face a long walk through the city following the cancellation of the city's night buses. 

As exclusively revealed by The Herald earlier today, First Bus, Glasgow's main bus operator, have decided to pull the plug on the late services, stating that they are no longer financial viable.

The decision follows a 12-month study by First Bus who claim that night services were running with as few as 14 passengers on board, per hour. Numbers would need to treble in order to make the routes viable.

Politicians and campaigners have described the decision as 'unjust' with Glasgow Greens' communities spokesperson Anthony Carroll stating: "Our daytime routes are well known, and if we replicated those, at least in those central hubs in our communities, then perhaps the familiarity can help increase uptake overnight. 

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"It will also help in addressing issues with Transport Scotland in allowing Under-22 NEC cards to allow free travel on them.

"Locking large parts of our city out of our transport network late at night serves no-one in Glasgow. 

"It's time these public transport providers start running our buses in the public interest." 

Formed in the wake of the 1985 Transport Act, which deregulated the UK local bus market, First Bus took the wheel in Glasgow in 1996 with the £110m acquisition of Strathclyde Buses.

The company and the services it provides have been supported by public subsidies, most recently in March 2023 when it was announced that First Glasgow and First Aberdeen would receive a combined £18.6m in Scottish Government funding to deliver 74 new electric vehicles, with First Bus investing a further £16.4m.

In light of the decision on night services, some have asked if First Bus can be forced to continue to run buses at this time - regardless of public demand.

This has raised further questions of how these services would be funded. Would First Bus, who, in the 52 weeks prior to March 2023 reported a strong financial performance and profits which had more than doubled from £82.1m the previous year, take the cost? Or would taxpayers be asked to pay from an ever-diminishing public purse?

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