Minibuses challenge taxi
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It has bought four Bedford CFs with 15-seat Dormobile bodies and three Volkswagen LT28s with Devon converted bodies. The Bedfords are being used on two lightly-trafficked services started last week along roads closed to larger vehicles in the west and north of Glasgow.
The Volkswagens are expected to be used later this month on totally demand-responsive services in the Easterhouse housing scheme in the east of the city. They will run when passengers turn up at a central point there, and will take them anywhere in the scheme. They will return to the base, picking up passengers on a stopanywhere basis.
To try to attract passengers from taxis, discounts are being offered to groups of adults. One adult will pay 50p, two 70p, three £1, four £1.20, and five £1.60.
These routes are being run on six-month short-term licences as part of a series of experiments supported by Strathclyde Regional Council and are marketed as "Microbus".
A Glasgow-Wemyss Bay express service run by Western SMT as part of these trials (CM, April 9) has been boycotted by potential passengers worried about the loss of their subsidised electric rail service.