A NEW bus service linking Haddington, Macmerry, Tranent and Wallyford with Edinburgh will be launched next weekend.

The 104 route, from Lothian Buses, will connect the four towns and villages with the Capital from next Sunday (September 7).

And it is set to rival the existing First 106 service, which links Haddington to Edinburgh’s Haymarket station.

The new route will make use of the A1 and Edinburgh’s Regent Road to save time, with buses operating up to every 30 minutes during the day.

The service, which will run each day, will also provide hourly buses during the late evening.

East Lothian MSP Iain Gray welcomed the announcement and said: “Greater choice and competition on the Haddington service has to be good news for local bus users, so I welcome the launch of this new service. “Lothian’s 113 Pencaitland-Edinburgh service has clearly been successful, and I hope that this new route will prove to be just as popular.” But the Labour politician was keen to see more power at a local level in a bid to see bus services benefit local people more.

“We still do not have enough local control of bus routes and services, though, and there are still too many problems with bus services across Scotland,” he said.

“I will continue to try and strengthen regulation of the Scottish bus industry through my Parliamentary Bill at Holyrood, which I hope to put before Parliament after the referendum.

“The highly regarded thinktank IPPR [on Tuesday] published a report saying that the time has come to reintroduce regulation of our bus services, so I think that this is an idea whose time is coming.” The service is also part of the wider Transport for Edinburgh network, meaning passengers who travel on the 104 using Lothian Country Buses DAYtickets or Lothian Country Buses RIDACARDS will also be able to travel on Lothian Buses and Edinburgh Trams.

The price will depend on where passengers are travelling from.

Passengers making their way from Haddington (zone D) to the Capital will pay £3.50 for adults, while those travelling from Gladsmuir or Macmerry (zone C) to Edinburgh will pay £2.50.

Those going from Tranent (zone B) to Edinburgh will pay £1.50.

In contrast, an adult single on the 106 from Haddington to Edinburgh city centre costs £4.20 but from Tranent to the Capital is £1.50.

East Lothian Council’s transport spokesman Councillor Michael Veitch said: “I’m absolutely delighted that Lothian Country Buses are set to launch a second route between East Lothian and Edinburgh.

“This new service will enhance competition on the key Haddington to Edinburgh corridor and provide another high-quality option for commuters and other local bus users.” Ian Craig, chief executive of Transport for Edinburgh, said: “We’re very pleased to be offering this new service that will give anyone going between the Capital and East Lothian a better way to travel, for work or pleasure.

“We’ll be using a fleet of modern single-deck buses that are environmentally friendly and fitted with wi-fi, and our team of dedicated drivers are looking forward to welcoming new customers on board.” Transport for Edinburgh staff will be in Haddington town centre tomorrow (Saturday) and the following Saturday from 10am to 2pm to provide more information.