There is much speculation about the origins of the Bus Shelter and how it came to be in the state it is in today. A story like is may be difficult to understand for many city dwellers as it relies on tremendous community spirit and trust, the kind you would only find on an island such as Unst.
The Bus Shelter sits on the corner of the main road through Unst (A968), and the Little Hamar Road on the North-East edge of Baltasound. It was the young residents of the Little Hamar Road that used the Shelter most frequently, catching the bus to school there every morning. A dull, brown but wholly effective bus shelter served this purpose for many years, until it fell fowl to the infamous Shetland weather in 1996. The roof of the shelter was blowing off and it was declared unsafe. To combat this, the windows were removed, causing understandable distress to the occupants. After some time, the council realised that this couldn’t work and simply demolished the shelter. That fateful day the school bus pulled up to a sorry site, the binkled shell of the hardy bus shelter lay broken on the tarmac with the only addition, an old brown chair, left on its side, sodden by the rain.
At that time there were 3 regular users of the shelter, none of whom were too happy about a shelterless wait for the bus. Action was required. The youngest, 7 year old Bobby, took that action and wrote to the local paper The Shetland Times expressing his discontent at the situation. Sure enough, this alerted the council who brought a brand new, bright red bus shelter and planted it on the foundations of the last one. There was rebirth and with it came improvement.
A few days after the completion of the replacement shelter, a wicker sofa and table appeared in it. Nobody said anything, nobody claimed responsibility. Soon afterwards, a small TV was added, closely followed by a ‘hot snacks’ counter. In the winter, a 2-bar heater was installed, allowing an even more comfortable wait and it wasn’t long before a carpet was fitted. By this time, The Bus Shelter had gained considerable publicity in many interested sectors. The visitors book was filling up and the comments indicated the demand for a website dedicated to the Unst Bus Shelter.








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