Glen Nevis Bus

This pilot project was developed in an effort to reduce the ever-increasing congestion in Glen Nevis, particularly during the summer season when more than 400,000 people visit the Glen. The current ‘drive, photo, leave’ phenomenon affecting many honeypot locations in Scotland, increases the use of private cars and vehicles and overwhelms the available parking. This leads to a range of environmentally damaging issues including verge side erosion and harmful pollution, and often makes a visit to the Glen stressful, devaluing the Glen Nevis experience.  

By contrast this new bus service, running hourly seven days a week from May to October, will provide opportunities for the local and visiting community to truly experience Glen Nevis in a sustainable and low impact way. It will stop at points of interest and will give visitors the opportunity to explore the Glen on one ticket, providing a slower, more immersive experience. Passengers will be able to sit back and admire the views or to participate in numerous walks along the Glen, and even better, you can take your dog with you!

The first service will head up the Glen leaving Fort William Middle Street at 7:30am and continue into the early evening with the last service leaving the Lower Falls car park at 6:00pm for those wishing to take it slow or embark on more adventurous activities. The reliability and frequency of the service will eliminate the pressure of ‘clock-watching’ the car and visitors will have greater flexibility in hop off locations than the current service provides.

Residents of Fort William can take advantage of a concessionary fare with a local smart card, which we hope will encourage more local people to sustainably explore the natural wilderness on their doorstep, without battling through crowds to find a parking space.

The bus will launch its first journey on the 4^th May and will run daily until 4^th October. This exciting project will complement the wider objective to tackle the congestion and pollution in Glen Nevis, including the installation of bike racks and shelters along the Glen, funded by Cycling Scotland, to encourage cycling through the beautiful routes that Glen Nevis has to offer.