The Falkirk Wheel in operation.
McGill’s Midland Bluebird operates the X36 and the X37 Swift branded bus services from Glasgow, Buchanan Bus Station to Stirling and Falkirk respectively. Monday to Saturday, and on Sundays too, there is an hourly service to both locations. I decided to make a trip to see the Falkirk Wheel. As the X37 drops you off at the top of the driveway that leads to the Wheel, this choice of destination made perfect sense. To prepare for this day out, I consulted the Midland Bluebird website [LINK]
https://www.mcgillsscotlandeast.co.uk/services/MBLB/X36
The web page for the X36 and X37 services helpfully has a PDF download option, to enabling me to print off both the timetable and the route map. For those with smart phones, the web page also has a live map on which you can track the progress of the buses.
When I travelled, I bought from the driver a day ticket that was valid for all zones in the McGill’s Group network. That paper ticket cost me £12.05. I thought that this was good value for a journey of over 40 miles as the crown flies. Of course, the day ticket also gives you the option to hop on and off the bus, which is what I did on the way back.
Midland Bluebird Alexander Dennis AD Enviro 40D in the X36 X37 Swift livery, leaving Buchanan Bus Station for Falkirk.
The X37 takes you from Glasgow’s city landscape into the urban-countryside along the M80 motorway, before exiting at junction 4 to visit the communities of Mollinsburn and Condorrat, just south east of Cumbernauld. At Condorrat, the bus joins a dual carriageway (the A8011) into Cumbernauld. Beyond the new town, the bus then visits Cumbernauld village, before taking the B816 out in the countryside to pass through the villages of Castlecary, Allandale and Bonnybridge, before joining the A803 towards Falkirk. The bus dropped me off at the Wester Carmuirs Park & Ride stop, around 1¼ miles outside Falkirk centre. Just past Castlecary, you start to see the Forth and Clyde Canal, alongside the B816, which eventually leads to the Falkirk Wheel.
The most depressing part of the journey is travelling through the gloomy underpass at Cumbernauld, home to “the Centre”. At either side of the dual carriageway, the X37 picks up and sets down at the bus stances located directly on each side of this busy thoroughfare (the A8011). In both directions, the enclosed bus stances sit alongside the loading bays and Biffa refuse bins to the rear of the stores that are within “the Centre”. From the vantage point of the upper deck of the X37, these dreary waiting areas don’t look to provide the most ideal comfort and amenities for passengers. I make a note to explore the bus facilities at Cumbernauld on a future trip.
Allandale Cottages in the historic, industrial village of Allandale (Falkirk City Council)
One of the joys of making a random trip by bus is that sometimes, the journey delivers points of interest that are as fascinating as the destination. In this case, a high point was the village of Allandale, which impressed me immediately when I saw the two rows of red sandstone dormer bungalows along each side of the road. Coming from Dumfries, where red sandstone is common in the Victorian heritage buildings, I noticed these outstanding bungalows straight away. I was intrigued enough to explore this village (in the pouring rain) on my return journey.
I found an information panel next to the main bus stop in Allandale. This explained that the village owes its existence both to the geology of the area, which was abundant in the silica-rich clay necessary to manufacture “heat resistant refractory bricks”; and to the “entrepreneurial spirit” of John Gilchirst Stein, founder of Allandale, through his construction of the cottages there as housing for his workers at the Castlecary Brick Works, which opened in 1903. The information panel indicates that the Allandale Cottages which I had admired were built between 1904 and 1928.
Legacy of the industrial past: Steins Thistle Football Club, Allandale village.
The information panel by the village bus stop relates that John Stein also provided a dining hall that was used for recreation after work; as well as a bowling green and a football pitch. The brick works established a works football team (today known as “Steins Thistle”) to play in the Scottish Amateur Football League. According to the panel, the football team was intended to help “improve staff morale” and “promote the business in the local community”. The football club still exists today and will play in the First Division of the Caledonian League for the 2026-27 season. Just beyond the football ground is the bowling club, which perhaps is also part of John Stein’s legacy.
Allandale is served just by the X37 service, so having time to spare, I walked along the B816 to Castlecary. Along the way, I passed several bus stops, none of which had timetable panels attached to the poles. The bus stop flags were basic [“Bus Stop”] with the bare minimum of information: the traveline Scotland phone number and the traveline website. The main stops in Allandale village (with adjacent shelters) did have panels and the Midland Bluebird timetables on display, but are some distance away from these other bus stops, which don’t even indicate their location; bus stop registration number; or which authority is responsible for them (Falkirk Council, I think, as we are still just inside the Falkirk boundary). To be fair to Falkirk Council, there is a page on their website which does say that you can write to them to ask for improvements to the bus stops and shelters in the local authority area.
Helpful bus stop panel at Castlecary: bus stop location, bus times, route diagram, QR code for live departures, website address and phone contact number for information.
Castlecary is in North Lanarkshire and here, the bus stop where I decide to wait for the X37 back to Glasgow does have a panel with plenty of useful information in it to keep me satisfied.
And what about the Falkirk Wheel? I was fortunate to arrive at the Wheel (a 15 minute walk from the Carmuirs bus stop) just as it began to rotate, moving a vessel from the Union Canal down to the Forth and Clyde Canal; and at least one barge in the reverse direction. Well worth the trip just to see that rotation, though a trip in winter might be much less crowded with tourists; providing more time to take in this engineering marvel.
Interior of the top deck of the Alexander Dennis Enviro AD40, with rear facing seats and tables.
Overall, a very pleasurable trip on a quality bus service. The seating on the Midland Bluebird for the one hour journey was comfortable and included the novel arrangement of rear facing seats with tables, which I guess are a bonus for a family or four friends that want to sit together. Not so good for a lone traveller: one young chap nearly missed his stop because he wasn’t facing the direction of travel. You have to use common sense when deciding on where to sit on these buses!
As ever, all the photographs are my own.
Steven Ardron
6 August 2026
