Gourock man misses IRH appointment after McGill’s 540 axe

James Cormack says he was late for his medical meeting at Inverclyde Royal because he was forced to take two buses after McGill's cancelled its 540 bus which ran between the Gourock rail head and Clynder Road in Greenock.   

James, 64, told the Telegraph that he arrived at the hospital 20 minutes behind schedule after having to travel from Gourock all the way into Greenock and then back towards IRH.

He said: "They [hospital staff] told me they were very sorry but they were very busy and couldn't see me.

"I don't know when I'll get another appointment. I left home two hours beforehand, so I left in plenty of time."

"I can't afford a taxi, it costs a fortune. It's about £6 one-way."

James, of Bute Street in Gourock, told how he has too many red blood cells and needs to go to the hospital regularly to get his bloods checked.

He added: "I feel sorry for people older than myself who are trying to get to the hospital.

"A lot of elderly people are not able to take two buses, I had to take the 507 to Greenock and the 545 up to the hospital.

"It's crazy. I'm not that far from Larkfield Road but there is no way I could walk up that hill.

"The government and MSPs are always saying to people to shop local but without the bus people in Midton can't get to the shops in Kempock Street."

James said he is one of the hunreds of people to have signed a petition launched by Gourock Community Council against the 540 cancellation, and supported by councillors Martin McCluskey and Lynne Quinn.

A protest demonstration was held recently outside Gourock Railway Station.

James said: "I think Councillor Quinn has been very good, meeting with McGill's and SPT.

"Surely they could get some money from the government.

"I feel very strongly about it, even if the ran the service Monday to Friday from 9am until 4pm."

McGill's said the decision was taken because the 540 was making a loss due to a lack of passengers. 

A spokesperson for the company said: "We recognise the impact of network changes and we have worked hard to mitigate those where possible.

With Scottish Government funding to support bus services through the pandemic now concluded, we also have to balance lower passenger numbers and revenue than existed prior to Covid with substantial increases in costs across wages, fuel and vehicles.

"Revenue is now approximately 10 per cent lower than it was pre-Covid and it now costs around 25 per cent more to keep buses on the road than it did pre-2020.

"Bus companies, which are operated privately - and much like local authorities - are not immune from the cost pressures of recent years.

“In the case of the 540, this has been replaced by a variation to the 543 to provide alternative links to and from Cardross Crescent.

"The 545 provides alternative links between Bridgend and Inverclyde Royal Hospital via Greenock town centre. Journeys between Gourock and Inverclyde Royal Hospital can be made by transferring between the 901 and 545 in Greenock town centre.

“To retain a good quality service overall for the region we have had to make some very difficult decisions.

"As we have stated previously, if local representatives can identify alternative funding streams, we would be willing to review the changes and we have had extensive dialogue with local authority representatives around Renfrewshire and Inverclyde in recent months.”