Breakthrough for 330 Edinburgh bus live time trackers after 'embarrassing' three-year delay

Edinburgh’s bus trackers are finally showing live arrival times – after a series of failures which put the multi-million pound project more than three years behind schedule.

Bus users have been left frustrated for months as continued testing of the system has meant 330 new screens were only displaying timetable information and not real-time service updates.

Costing £2.9m and originally meant to be up and running by early 2021, a series of further missed deadlines led councillors to brand the fiasco “embarrassing” at a meeting last month.

Live arrival times are now showing on Edinburgh's bus tracking system, more than three years behind schedule | Lothian Buses

However some on social media this week reported the trackers appeared to be functioning properly at last.

And the long-awaited news was confirmed by officials at the transport committee on Thursday.

“The travel tracker is working,” head of major projects and commissioning Hannah Ross told members.

Operational Support Officer Andrew Macleod said: “As of 4.30 pm on Monday, Lothian Buses real time departure went live at all screens across Edinburgh.”

Mr Macleod said it was now “working fantastically well,” adding: “So far what we’re seeing is 97 per cent of everything coming through is correct and accurate.

“There are going to be some teething issues. We’ll never get 100 per cent correct but we will continue to monitor it.”

Conservative group leader Iain Whyte said: “I spotted real time information on my bus home from the City Chambers at the South Bridge bus stop on Monday. And it seemed at that point to be accurate.”

However, he added: “My bus this morning, the 35, disappeared from the screen before the bus came round the corner and to the bus stop.”

Transport convener Stephen Jenkinson said: “I was quite keen to ensure that the due diligence was done by officers to ensure not only the roll out of the necessary patches were successful, but it was actually continually tested over a period of time before going out and actually advertising it to the populous.

“Because the last thing any of us need to do with regards to this particular project is to over promise and not deliver.”

The council now plans to install tracker screens at more bus stops across the capital.