Peterhead bus services to be diverted during £250,000 interchange improvement works

Improvement works worth £250,000 will be carried out at the Peterhead transport interchange this summer.

Aberdeenshire Council put an improvement plan in place after concerns were raised about the condition of the footpaths and bus shelters at the site.

From June 19 until the end of July, the facility will be closed as painting, landscaping and repairs are carried out.

The work, funded by Nestrans, will include the installation of new bus shelters, benches, planters and cycle lockers.

Bus services diverted

Bus services will be diverted while the works are carried out with temporary bus stops in place around Peterhead.

Local services will be diverted along Prince Street, then Back Street and left on to Windmill Street. The bus stops will be placed next to the interchange.

The Buchan Express services heading to Aberdeen will leave from the temporary stop on Windmill Street.

Meanwhile, the Buchan Express services bound for Peterhead will divert via South Road to King Street then turn right on to Windmill Street.

One bus stop on Kirk Street and two on St Peter Street will be missed.

Community-inspired mural

A mural will also be commissioned on the site to add an eye-catching splash of colour for bus passengers.

It will be created with the help of north-east youngsters and be painted on the rear wall of Brew Toon brewers.

Dianne Beagrie, chairwoman of the Buchan area committee, said: “Through the addition of street furniture such as benches incorporated with planters, it provides additional outdoor seating and enhances biodiversity by increasing the presence of plants and flowers in addition to the introduction of a living roof on the shelters themselves.

“The improvements package will also focus on improving the wider aesthetics of the site to create a more pleasing environment for bus users and I’m sure the community-inspired mural will do just that.”

Ewan Wallace, head of environment and sustainability services, added: “The new bus shelters will comprise the new Aberdeenshire high specification standard with sedum planting on each roof, solar-powered LED lighting and low energy battery powered e-paper Papercast displays to provide passenger information.

“The solar powered lighting uses modern battery storage methods to charge the batteries in the most efficient way resulting in green energy that provides greater light output with lower power requirements.”