adrock1976
Established Member
I have had a go at using the draw.io program to draw a schematic diagram of a bus network for Cumbernauld. So far, this one is for mainly Mon - Sat daytime although some routes will run Sunday daytime too. I have not got round to designing a modified diagram for Sundays yet.
My start point was the Ember Travel, Scottish Citylink, and Stagecoach East routes, as the things they share in common are not calling at Glasgow Royal Infirmary, running via M8 and M80, exiting the M80 at J4A Low Wood, running via the A8011 calling at the Town Centre, and rejoining the M80 at J6 Old Inns. I built everything else around those routes.
There have been some modifications to some routes, with the present day X3 (First Glasgow) and the X25/X25A (Stagecoach Ayr) remaining exactly as they are, and the present day 43 and 45 (Canavan) renumbered to 145 and 146. The X36 and X37 to Stirling and Falkirk has a slight modification in that they run via Greenfaulds Road (rejoining the A8011 at Jane's Brae) and the X36 running via Castlecary Road rejoining the M80 at J6A for the run to Haggs (like how the X39 did). With Aldi and Home Bargains planning to open stores at the Westway Retail Park in Wardpark, this would make it more accessible using public transport being as Castlecary Road is not designed for large volumes of constant traffic (this area was not part of the CDC to be developed, with Castlecary predating the New Town) and restores the 30 minute combined frequency there.
The 36 is the existing First Glasgow 38C renumbered back to how it was, and is extended from Chryston to Cumbernauld TC via Gartferry Road, Condorrat Main Road, North Road, Craiglinn Roundabout, Croy Station forecourt, Balloch Loop Road, Glen Fyne Road, Carrickstone, and the Village. This would be built around the railway timetable for the bus to connect with the trains at Croy, and would not depart until at least 5 minutes after the train has departed. Also, this would provide interchange at the Village with the Stirling and Falkirk buses. This would restore some links that were lost, as Moorhead and Moodiesburn had always had a direct bus to Condorrat until Simplicity, and the neighbourhoods north of the M80 used to have a direct bus to Glasgow when the X3 used to run that way. Although the 36 is not intended for end to end journeys to and from Glasgow, this serves as providing overlapping journeys along its route.
The X28 (previously ran by Stagecoach Ayr until it was took off in July 2022) is restored in a modified version. This runs Glasgow - Abronhill exiting the M80 at J3 Hornshill Junction, then via Muirhead and the A80 direct to Mollinsburn, then Condorrat Main Road, Condorrat North Ring, A8011, Seafar Road, Kildrum Road, and direct to Abronhill. This restores a direct bus from Seafar Road as it has always had a direct Glasgow bus, and there are new residential flats planned to be built at the sites of the former Kingfisher pub and the former HMRC offices. Journeys on Sunday daytimes could be extended to Westway Retail Park (see 646 Mon-Sat below).
Onto some minor tweaks, the Monklands Hospital present day 147/247 have their routes unchanged as far as the A8011 Glasgow Road. From here, all journeys will run via Condorrat North Ring (Morar Drive), North Road, and Westfield between the A8011 and Craiglinn Roundabout. The 247 is renumbered to 148 and will run to Kirkintilloch every 60 minutes daily daytime via Blackwood. The existing 247 journeys that run to Smithstone during the day are renumbered to 147 like how it is presently with the evening and Sunday journeys that run to Kilsyth vice Kirkintilloch, and will run daily every 60 minutes via Blackwood, Smithstone Road, Croy Station, and Auchinstarry Basin to Kilsyth. Of note, the present day Kirkintilloch journeys struggle to run to time, and by running via Condorrat and Westfield would require at the least a fifth vehicle, a decent layover at both ends should make the timetable more robust. Also, Blackwood would have a frequency of every 30 minutes daytime making it a more useable service (again, Blackwood was never part of the CDC areas to be developed as it did not exist until 2002, and most if not all homes are detached and semi-detached family homes with space for 2 cars to be parked on the driveway).
The present day 35 (McGill's) Falkirk - Condorrat via Kilsyth has been trimmed back to Craiglinn Roundabout so as to help with its timekeeping. Together with the 147 above, these combine to provide a frequency of every 30 minutes between Croy Station and Kilsyth (the 35 can depart up to 5-8 minutes later from the opposite half hour to the 147 as it runs direct). Furthermore, the renumbered 43 and 45 (Canavan) to 145 and 146 has the 145 from Abronhill - A8011, but revised to run via Condorrat South Ring (Etive Drive), Condorrat Main Road, and Condorrat North Ring to terminate at Morar Drive, returning to Abronhill via the reverse of the above route. Frequency every 30 minutes daytime. The 146 runs Abronhill - Kilsyth reverting back to its previous route from the A8011 via Back o' Hill Roundabout, Retail Park, and coming back on itself to Craiglinn Roundabout. Frequency every 30 minutes daytime, every 60 minutes evenings and Sundays. Together with the 35 and 147, daytime frequency Croy Station - Kilsyth is every 15 minutes.
Finally, I was trying to do something with the extremely limited service of the present day 346 that runs Cumbernauld Station - Wardpark via Abronhill. This has been renumbered 646 being as it would be a shoppers minibus service extended at both ends. Southwards extension is to Craiglinn Roundabout via Greenfaulds Road and A8011. Northwards extension calls in at Westway Retail Park (no longer serving the stop halfway along Napier Road - see Google Maps), then runs to Craigmarloch Tesco via Old Inns, Westerwood, Carrickstone, and Glen Fyne Road. Also, will serve Larch Road in Abronhill. Frequency ideally every 30 minutes, but could be 40 or 45 minutes if need be, with no more than 2 minibuses required. Also, if need be, instead of Tesco Craigmarloch, the northern extension could run as far was Carrickstone being as that neighbourhood is on a hilltop (again, never was intended to be developed by the CDC as it would have broken the plan of every neighbourhood of the New Town being a downhill walk from the Town Centre. This was (like Blackwood) down to the Monklands Mafia of the (New) Labour Party who sold off the land to private developers).
I have attached the diagram in JPEG below (A3 size).
My start point was the Ember Travel, Scottish Citylink, and Stagecoach East routes, as the things they share in common are not calling at Glasgow Royal Infirmary, running via M8 and M80, exiting the M80 at J4A Low Wood, running via the A8011 calling at the Town Centre, and rejoining the M80 at J6 Old Inns. I built everything else around those routes.
There have been some modifications to some routes, with the present day X3 (First Glasgow) and the X25/X25A (Stagecoach Ayr) remaining exactly as they are, and the present day 43 and 45 (Canavan) renumbered to 145 and 146. The X36 and X37 to Stirling and Falkirk has a slight modification in that they run via Greenfaulds Road (rejoining the A8011 at Jane's Brae) and the X36 running via Castlecary Road rejoining the M80 at J6A for the run to Haggs (like how the X39 did). With Aldi and Home Bargains planning to open stores at the Westway Retail Park in Wardpark, this would make it more accessible using public transport being as Castlecary Road is not designed for large volumes of constant traffic (this area was not part of the CDC to be developed, with Castlecary predating the New Town) and restores the 30 minute combined frequency there.
The 36 is the existing First Glasgow 38C renumbered back to how it was, and is extended from Chryston to Cumbernauld TC via Gartferry Road, Condorrat Main Road, North Road, Craiglinn Roundabout, Croy Station forecourt, Balloch Loop Road, Glen Fyne Road, Carrickstone, and the Village. This would be built around the railway timetable for the bus to connect with the trains at Croy, and would not depart until at least 5 minutes after the train has departed. Also, this would provide interchange at the Village with the Stirling and Falkirk buses. This would restore some links that were lost, as Moorhead and Moodiesburn had always had a direct bus to Condorrat until Simplicity, and the neighbourhoods north of the M80 used to have a direct bus to Glasgow when the X3 used to run that way. Although the 36 is not intended for end to end journeys to and from Glasgow, this serves as providing overlapping journeys along its route.
The X28 (previously ran by Stagecoach Ayr until it was took off in July 2022) is restored in a modified version. This runs Glasgow - Abronhill exiting the M80 at J3 Hornshill Junction, then via Muirhead and the A80 direct to Mollinsburn, then Condorrat Main Road, Condorrat North Ring, A8011, Seafar Road, Kildrum Road, and direct to Abronhill. This restores a direct bus from Seafar Road as it has always had a direct Glasgow bus, and there are new residential flats planned to be built at the sites of the former Kingfisher pub and the former HMRC offices. Journeys on Sunday daytimes could be extended to Westway Retail Park (see 646 Mon-Sat below).
Onto some minor tweaks, the Monklands Hospital present day 147/247 have their routes unchanged as far as the A8011 Glasgow Road. From here, all journeys will run via Condorrat North Ring (Morar Drive), North Road, and Westfield between the A8011 and Craiglinn Roundabout. The 247 is renumbered to 148 and will run to Kirkintilloch every 60 minutes daily daytime via Blackwood. The existing 247 journeys that run to Smithstone during the day are renumbered to 147 like how it is presently with the evening and Sunday journeys that run to Kilsyth vice Kirkintilloch, and will run daily every 60 minutes via Blackwood, Smithstone Road, Croy Station, and Auchinstarry Basin to Kilsyth. Of note, the present day Kirkintilloch journeys struggle to run to time, and by running via Condorrat and Westfield would require at the least a fifth vehicle, a decent layover at both ends should make the timetable more robust. Also, Blackwood would have a frequency of every 30 minutes daytime making it a more useable service (again, Blackwood was never part of the CDC areas to be developed as it did not exist until 2002, and most if not all homes are detached and semi-detached family homes with space for 2 cars to be parked on the driveway).
The present day 35 (McGill's) Falkirk - Condorrat via Kilsyth has been trimmed back to Craiglinn Roundabout so as to help with its timekeeping. Together with the 147 above, these combine to provide a frequency of every 30 minutes between Croy Station and Kilsyth (the 35 can depart up to 5-8 minutes later from the opposite half hour to the 147 as it runs direct). Furthermore, the renumbered 43 and 45 (Canavan) to 145 and 146 has the 145 from Abronhill - A8011, but revised to run via Condorrat South Ring (Etive Drive), Condorrat Main Road, and Condorrat North Ring to terminate at Morar Drive, returning to Abronhill via the reverse of the above route. Frequency every 30 minutes daytime. The 146 runs Abronhill - Kilsyth reverting back to its previous route from the A8011 via Back o' Hill Roundabout, Retail Park, and coming back on itself to Craiglinn Roundabout. Frequency every 30 minutes daytime, every 60 minutes evenings and Sundays. Together with the 35 and 147, daytime frequency Croy Station - Kilsyth is every 15 minutes.
Finally, I was trying to do something with the extremely limited service of the present day 346 that runs Cumbernauld Station - Wardpark via Abronhill. This has been renumbered 646 being as it would be a shoppers minibus service extended at both ends. Southwards extension is to Craiglinn Roundabout via Greenfaulds Road and A8011. Northwards extension calls in at Westway Retail Park (no longer serving the stop halfway along Napier Road - see Google Maps), then runs to Craigmarloch Tesco via Old Inns, Westerwood, Carrickstone, and Glen Fyne Road. Also, will serve Larch Road in Abronhill. Frequency ideally every 30 minutes, but could be 40 or 45 minutes if need be, with no more than 2 minibuses required. Also, if need be, instead of Tesco Craigmarloch, the northern extension could run as far was Carrickstone being as that neighbourhood is on a hilltop (again, never was intended to be developed by the CDC as it would have broken the plan of every neighbourhood of the New Town being a downhill walk from the Town Centre. This was (like Blackwood) down to the Monklands Mafia of the (New) Labour Party who sold off the land to private developers).
I have attached the diagram in JPEG below (A3 size).
