First Edinburgh

Infobox Bus transit
name = First South East & Central Scotland

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logo_size = 150

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image_size = 250
image_caption = A First Edinburgh Volvo B7TL/Wright Eclipse Gemini.
company_slogan = Transforming travel
parent = FirstGroup
founded =
headquarters = Stirling
locale = Stirling, Falkirk, Lothians, Edinburgh, Scottish Borders
service_area =
service_type = bus
alliance =
routes =
destinations =
stops =
hubs =
stations =
lounge =
fleet = Over 420
ridership =
fuel_type =
operator =
ceo =
website = [http://www.firstgroup.com/ukbus/scotland/sescot/home/ First South East & Central Scotland]

First Edinburgh Ltd is a bus operator in south east and central Scotland, part of First Group plc. Despite the company name, the company operates across a swathe of the central, eastern and borders regions of Scotland and into northern England, branded simply as 'First' on buses and marketed as the regional company First in South East & Central Scotland, headquartered at Larbert, Falkirk. The large operating area stems from the aquisition and merger in 1999 of the companies Lowland Scottish, Eastern Scottish and Midland Scottish. It runs many services, has a fleet of over 420 buses, and employs over 1200 staff [ [http://www.firstgroup.com/ukbus/scotland/sescot/about/index.php FirstGroup - UK Bus South East & Central Scotland ] ] .

Operational area

Together with First Glasgowto the east, as of the 2000s First operated buses throughout most of southern Scotland, covering Ayrshire, Renfrewshire, Dunbartonshire, Glasgow, Lanarkshire, Clackmannanshire, Stirlingshire, Lothians, Edinburgh and the Scottish Borders. From October 2004, First Group gained the ScotRail rail franchise to run until 2014, increasing its dominance in the public transport market in the central belt.

The company's presence in the Borders has declined drastically due to the withdrawal of commercial town services and the loss of rural tendered services to independent operators. The depots at Berwick-upon-Tweed, Hawick, Jedburgh, Kelso and Peebles (recently demolished) have all closed, leaving just Galashiels as an operating base in the Borders. Haddington depot in East Lothian also closed, although the sub depot at North Berwick survives, and today has its own vehicle allocation.

Edinburgh bus war

First sought to increase their market share of Edinburgh city services in 2001, cutting fares and increasing traffic on certain routes. This sparked a very bitter 'bus war' between First and Edinburgh city operator Lothian Buses, with fares being cut, extra vehicles being drafted in, timetables altered and routes being diverted. Lothian complained to the Office of Fair Trading, claiming First was engaging in anti-competitive behaviour in an effort to become the dominant operator in Edinburgh. However, the OfT ruled that First Edinburgh's conduct represented legitimate competition; that it did not intend to 'drive Lothian off the streets', and that its fares were low enough in comparison to its costs. Regardless of this decision, the First network in Edinburgh was curtailed, ending the bus war and leaving Lothian as the dominant city operator.

References

External links

* [http://www.firstgroup.com/ukbus/scotland/sescot/home/ First Edinburgh Website]
* [http://www.firstgroup.com/ukbus/index.php First UK Bus Website]
* [http://www.firstgroup.com/ukbus/scotland/sescot/map/Edinburgh.pdf Route Map showing main First Edinburgh services]
* [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/1492381.stm Report on Edinburgh 'bus war']
* [http://www.oft.gov.uk/News/Press+releases/2004/75-04.htm OFT report "First Edinburgh not predatory"]