New operator set to take over school bus fire route as pupils return

dailyrecord.co.uk:

A new operator is set to take over the running of a school bus route which was the scene of a dramatic fire at Port of Menteith in June.The blaze affected the service travelling to take pupils back from McLaren High to Aberfoyle and led to youngsters having to be evacuated as the back of the double decker caught fire in front of stunned onlookers.There were no injuries resulting from the fire, with the matter being raised by Trossachs and Teith councillor Gene Maxwell and Stirling MSP Evelyn Tweed following concerns by parents over the safety of the school buses being used on the route.An investigation has since been launched into the cause of the fire, with Stirling Council working alongside operators Carrs Loch Lomond.But a new timetable released by First Scotland East has revealed that it is now to take control of the M4 route linking Gartmore, Aberfoyle and Port of Menteith with McLaren High on behalf of Stirling Council from the start of next week.First Scotland will also take charge of three other rural routes as of Monday ahead of pupils returning to Stirling’s schools on Wednesday.These are the BF4 route between Killearn and Balfron High, the BF5 route linking Balmaha and Balfron High and the BF6/BF7 journey from Strathblane to the same school.In a statement to the Stirling Observer, a Stirling Council spokesman said the previous operators had given notice to leave their contracts before the fire took place and confirmed the investigation was still ongoing.The spokesman said: “The contractor had given notice on all their school contracts before the incident.

We subsequently retendered these contracts and awarded them to alternative operators.“We are awaiting the conclusion of the DVSA (Driver Vehicle Standards