Survey shows travel in Scotland back to pre-pandemic levels

A survey of Scotland’s transport and travel habits has found that levels of travel have now returned to where they were immediately prior to the pandemic.

Transport Scotland statisticians today released the Transport and Travel in Scotland statistics publication. The publication includes a range of statistics from the Scottish Household Survey (SHS) about the journeys people make and how they travel.

The survey found that in 2024, 73% of people had travelled the day before their survey interview. This is higher than in 2023 (64%) and a return to the level seen in 2019 before the COVID-19 pandemic. The average number of trips per adult was 1.96, up from 1.59 in 2023 and similar to 2019 (1.94).

When people did travel, over half of journeys (51%) were made by driving a car or van. Walking was the next most common mode of transport, accounting for 25% of journeys in 2024. 12% of journeys were made as a car or van passenger, 7% by bus and 2% by rail.

The survey also found that levels of homeworking had fallen from 2023, but remained above 2019 levels. In 2024, the proportion of employed people who described themselves as working at or from home was 25%. This compares to 29% in 2023 and 16% in 2019.

In other findings, the survey recorded that satisfaction with public transport had not changed between 2023 and 2024. The proportion of all survey respondents stating that they were very or fairly satisfied with public transport was 64% in both 2023 and 2024. This is higher than 2022 (58%), but lower than in 2019 (68%).

Satisfaction with public transport was lowest in rural areas. Satisfaction rates for those living in remote rural and accessible rural areas (43% and 41% respectively) contrasted with a satisfaction rate of 75% for those living in large urban areas.

The survey also found a continuing increase in respondents who owned an electric vehicle. 5.8% of driving licence holders reported owning an electric vehicle in 2024. This is an increase from 1.6% in 2019 and 0.3% in 2016.

However, the percentage of drivers saying they wouldn’t consider buying an electric car was 56% in 2024. This the highest percentage since the question was first asked in 2016

When asked their reasons for not considering buying a plug-in electric car or van the most common answer given was the availability or convenience of charging points (52%), followed by the cost of vehicle purchase (50%) and the battery (i.e. the distance that can be travelled on a charge) (49%).

The full statistical publication, including detailed tables, is available on the Transport Scotland website: Transport and Travel in Scotland 2024 | Transport Scotland