Concessionary travel data

We monitor data relating to our National Concessionary Travel Schemes (NCTS), which provide free bus travel for those aged under 22, 60+ and eligible disabled people, on a regular basis. You can find the latest data on concessionary bus journeys and cardholders below.

Important information about this data

  • All information is correct, based on available data, at the time of publication.
  • Transport Scotland does not own the National Entitlement Card. Cardholder data is supplied by the National Entitlement Card Programme Office (NECPO).
  • Cardholder data refers to the number of people with a valid NEC but does not include products which either start in the future or have expired.
  • NECPO work with stakeholders and partners to carry out regular data cleansing of the customer database which may impact cardholder numbers when records are updated.
  • Journey data refers to a smart journey recorded against a valid product that has been received and processed for payment by Transport Scotland.

All data is subject to change due to late data being received.

Journeys

Number of smart journeys made by bus through the different NCTS and the totals
Month Young Persons' Free Bus Travel Scheme Older & Disabled Persons' Free Bus Travel Scheme
April 2025 6,591,127 9,327,060
May 2025 Not applicable Not applicable
June 2025 Not applicable Not applicable
July 2025 Not applicable Not applicable
August 2025 Not applicable Not applicable
September 2025 Not applicable Not applicable
October 2025 Not applicable Not applicable
November 2025 Not applicable Not applicable
December 2025 Not applicable Not applicable
January 2026 Not applicable Not applicable
February 2026 Not applicable Not applicable
March 2026 Not applicable Not applicable
Total to date 6,591,127 9,327,060

The total number of journeys taken through the Young Persons’ Free Bus Travel Scheme since its commencement in January 2022 is 218,494,929 as at 30 April 2025.

Cardholders

The table below shows the number of valid National Entitlement Cardholders who can access the different NCTS and the total.

Local Authority Young Persons' Free Bus Travel Scheme Older & Disabled Persons' Free Bus Travel Scheme
Aberdeen City 32,815 56,565
Aberdeenshire 39,235 74,965
Angus Council 15,252 37,363
Argyll & Bute 10,098 32,171
City of Edinburgh 90,500 142,684
Clackmannanshire 5,760 13,784
Comhairle nan Eilean Siar 3,217 8,991
Dumfries and Galloway 16,680 56,867
Dundee City 24,309 41,700
East Ayrshire 18,302 35,946
East Dunbartonshire 14,994 34,842
East Lothian 17,533 34,375
East Renfrewshire 15,930 26,659
Falkirk 21,138 41,510
Fife 61,094 116,287
Glasgow City 94,661 150,594
Highland 25,912 72,012
Inverclyde 11,664 25,066
Midlothian 14,809 27,191
Moray 11,930 27,530
North Ayrshire 20,720 43,640
North Lanarkshire 52,506 84,442
Orkney Islands 2,536 7,544
Perth & Kinross 20,031 49,100
Renfrewshire 26,288 51,449
Scottish Borders 13,556 36,762
Shetland Islands 3,485 7,343
South Ayrshire 13,401 38,694
South Lanarkshire 50,185 91,091
Stirling 12,331 24,235
West Dunbartonshire 14,431 26,681
West Lothian 25,431 45,605
Total as at 30 Apr 2025 800,734 1,563,688