Bus travel in East Fife is as easy as ABC

The ABC bus ticket scheme, already available in Dundee, has now comes to Fife, providing new ticket options for less.

Bus operators have once again joined forces to offer an unlimited travel, smart bus ticket to people who need to use more than one bus company to make their journey. The existing ABC bus scheme is already available in Dundee and offers adult and child versions of the multi-operator ticket, which is accepted on any Moffat & Williamson, Stagecoach or Xplore Dundee bus.

The three bus operators have now extended the scheme into Fife, offering two new ticket zones for passengers in Dundee and East Fife. The three zones available from 3 June will be the existing Dundee zone, a new East Fife zone and a third area which combines Dundee and East Fife. The development means that bus users can connect up their journeys using more than one operator, or continue onward journeys using another service, without paying for separate tickets.

The new East Fife zone covers travel from the Tay Road bridge, south to include St Andrews and the East Neuk, Leven and as far east as Glenrothes, Strathmiglo, Auchtermuchty and Newburgh.

The ABC ticket scheme is making smart bus travel even easier. Tickets are loaded onto a smartcard - a durable card which is ‘read’ by the ticket machine on the bus and can be used time and time again.

ABC, which stands for All Bus Companies, has already facilitated almost 100k passenger journeys since it was launched in Dundee in 2016. The expansion into Fife, now provides even more journey opportunities, making bus travel more affordable and even easier with just one ticket required.

ABC tickets are valid for 1 day or 7 days and can be purchased for an adult or a child. Most tickets can be bought from the driver by loading an existing smartcard with the product, or customers can buy ABC tickets at Seagate bus station in Dundee, the Xplore Dundee travel shop on Commercial St Dundee, or at St Andrews bus station.

The partnership also involves Dundee City Council and Fife council, and is supported by Transport Scotland and Smarter Choices, Smarter Places programme funding.

The scheme was officially launched today at St Andrews Community Hospital, where the operators gathered with local authorities, representatives from Transport Scotland and local Councillors to celebrate the expanded project, before introducing the concept to bus users in St Andrews.

Cabinet Secretary for Transport, Infrastructure and Connectivity, Michael Matheson said: “I welcome the extension of the Dundee ABC smart zone to East Fife. This is a great example of collaborative action, with bus operators, local authorities and Transport Scotland working together to improve passenger travel options across the region, meaning that people can connect journeys and continue onwards across Dundee and East Fife without needing separate tickets."

Stagecoach East Scotland Managing Director Douglas Robertson said: “Launching ABC back in 2016 as an innovative new multi-operator ticket, we didn’t know how many people needed to use more than one operator to make their regular journeys. We’ve seen the popularity of the Dundee ABC tickets increase over the years and so we’ve worked together again to extend the travel options into Fife. With our extensive range of services between Fife and Dundee, the project has made it even easier for people make their full journeys by bus, with one smart ticket and a simple fare structure.”

George Devine, Managing Director, Moffat and Williamson Ltd commented: We’re delighted that the ABC scheme is being extended throughout Fife. In conjunction with Stagecoach, Xplore and Dundee City Council, the scheme is already very successful in Dundee and parts of Angus offering passengers a variety of travel opportunities using the same card to travel on each companies’ services. Fife Council are now in the partnership along with the Go Flexi service, further extending this excellent travel initiative.”

Cllr. Altany Craik, Convener - Economy Tourism, Strategic Planning & Transportation Committee, said: "This initiative helps to contribute to our Plan4Fife goals; to improve affordable and sustainable public transport, particularly in rural parts of Fife. It also helps people to get to and from work in Mid Fife through the use of a single travel card."

Coinciding with the launch of new ticket zones, the fares for the existing Dundee tickets have also been revised. The price has been frozen since launch, representing the excellent value offered by the multi-operator ticket option.