Late-night buses to help cut festive trouble

A new late-night bus service is being introduced over the festive period in a bid to curb alcohol-fuelled violence in the streets of Elgin.

The Moray Community Safety Partnership is spending £10,000 on initiatives that will reduce alcohol-related problems in the city over Christmas and New Year.

The bus service will operate from 12.30am to 3.20am.

Lead officer for the partnership and Grampian Police’s liaison officer with Moray Council, Sergeant Grant McCutcheon, said violence often flared when late-night revellers were waiting in Elgin for transport to outlying towns.

“A late-night bus service is one of a range of measures that we will be providing to ensure that the public remains safe over the festive period,” he said.

“It’s a bit of an experiment, but we know that it is when people are hanging around waiting for transport home that tempers begin to fray and the potential for violence increases.

“By reducing the time people have to wait for transport and increasing their options, we hope to see a reduction in the level of alcohol-fuelled violence in Elgin town centre.“We are grateful for the financial support that Moray Council and the Scottish Government have provided to help us set up this service.”

Councillor Eric McGillivray, chairman of the Moray Community Planning Partnership, welcomed the initiative.

“This is community planning in action,” he said. “When you look at the range of organisations involved in working together and the importance of this issue to Moray, we can see that it is a great example of what can be achieved by the partnership.”

Councillor McGillivray added: “It links three themes of the Community Plan – achieving a healthy and caring community, a safer community and improving facilities and choice.”

The bus service will commence on the weekend of December 8, with a flat fare of £3 for anyone using it.

All buses will carry marshals to make sure journeys are trouble-free for passengers and drivers.

The partnership is also employing marshals to ensure the smooth operation of the taxi rank in Elgin High Street.

Sgt McCutcheon added: “Competition for taxis among those who have had more alcohol than they should leads to violent incidents. The deployment of trained marshals should help reduce these and maintain calm.”

Posters and leaflets carrying timetables for the bus service will be distributed by Grampian Fire and Rescue Service to licensed premises in Elgin.

The handouts will also carry the Don’t Drink And Drive message.

Pete Smith, based at the Elgin fire station, said anything that removed the temptation to risk driving after drinking had the service’s full support.

“We are happy to be involved with this initiative,” he said. “With the provision of public transport and an expected increased availability of taxis, there is no reason why anybody should even consider driving after they have been drinking.

“It would be wonderful if this Christmas and New Year our crews don’t have to cut dead and injured people from the wreckage of a road accident caused by a drunk driver.”

Moray Community Health and Social Care Partnership will contribute to the campaign by distributing credit card-sized taxi cards.

These will list the telephone numbers of a number of local taxi firms and a list of do’s and don’ts for taxi users.

Tracey Gervaise, who leads the partnership, said: “It’s good that so many organisations are working together to promote public safety over the festive period.

“It is important to get the anti-violence and drink-driving messages across, but from my perspective it is equally important to make sure that people understand the potential health risks of over-consumption of alcohol.”