Regional plan for buses in Scotland
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• The ownership and control of municipal bus undertakings in Aberdeen, Dundee and Edinburgh will be transferred to the new regional authorities under the proposals for local government reform.
The transfer will be part of a scheme in which the regional authorities will be responsible for the planning and co-ordination of all public transport in their areas. The details of the proposals were announced at the weekend in a Scottish Development Department memorandum issued to local authorities and bus operators.
In Glasgow, municipal transport will be transferred to the Passenger Transport Authority which is being set up by the Scottish Secretary, in advance of local government reform.
Referring to the transfer of the bus undertakings of the three other cities, the memorandum says the Scottish Secretary recognizes that this proposal does not entirely reflect the view expressed by the Wheatley Commission, who saw no difficulty in the municipal services continuing to be run locally.
It adds, however, that the Commission laid emphasis on the necessity for municipal services to be operated within the general policy control of the regional authority.
It is not expected that the transfer will, in itself, enable the regions to operate services over any wider area than is possible under the powers conferred by the local legislation now governing the undertakings, the memorandum states.
Conferring a positive statutory duty on local authorities to Plan and co-ordinate public passenger transport services of all kinds is described as the "most important innovation".