£2 Bus Fare Cap

The £2 Bus Fare Cap is helping to make bus travel more affordable and improve access to employment, education and leisure in Scotland. It is currently available across participating services in;

• Highlands and Islands
• Strathclyde (from Monday 7 September)

The Scottish Government is committed to introducing legislation for a nationwide £2 Bus Fare Cap before the end of this Parliament. Whilst there is no confirmed rollout schedule, as yet, updates will be provided on our website when available.

Before you travel

To qualify for the fare cap;

• your service must be operated by a participating bus operator; and
• your journey must be eligible under the scheme rules.

Concessionary travel cardholders can continue to travel for free using their National Entitlement Card (NEC) or Young Scot NEC.

How it works

Single adult and child bus fares are capped at £2 on participating services. You must state your destination to the driver when you board the bus.

If your journey starts and ends within the fare cap area, you pay no more than £2 for an eligible single journey.

If only part of your journey is within the fare cap area, you pay £2 for the eligible section and the normal fare for the remainder.

If your journey crosses both fare cap areas (Strathclyde and Highlands and Islands), and does not enter another Regional Transport Partnership area, you pay no more than £4 for an eligible single journey.

A separate fare is required each time you change buses, even where services are operated by the same company.

Premium fare services are excluded from the scheme, such as tour buses, night services or private-hire services. If you are unsure if your journey is included, please check with your bus operator before travelling.

Where the fare cap applies

The fare cap in the Highlands and Islands is operated in partnership with HITRANS and ZetTrans Regional Transport Partnerships. It operates in the following areas;

• Highland
• Moray
• Orkney
• Shetland
• Western Isles (Comhairle nan Eilean Siar)
• Argyll and Bute (excluding Helensburgh and Lomond)

Journey examples

The cost of your fare depends on whether your journey is wholly or partly within the fare cap area, and whether you require multiple buses to undertake your journey. For example;

• Travelling on a single service from Inverness to Nairn? The fare cap applies and you’ll pay £2.

• Travelling on two services from Dingwall to Thurso? The fare cap applies for each service you travel on and you’ll pay £4.

• Going from Pitlochry to Aviemore? You will pay £2 for the eligible section within the fare cap area plus the normal fare for the remainder of your journey. The total fare will be calculated automatically by your operator.

Participating operators

Participating operators may change over time where operators choose to join or leave the scheme.

Highland

• Assynt Taxi
• Citylink
• D&E Coaches
• D M K Motors
• Douglas L Jack
• Dunnett's Transport Ltd
• Easter Ross Coach Company LLP t/a Rapsons Highland
• Ember
• Harvey MacDonald
• Highland Council
• Hugh MacKay
• Lochaber Action on Disability
• Lochcarron Garage
• MacDonald Coaches (Skye) Ltd
• Macleod's Coaches
• Ormlie & Violets Taxis
• Shiel Buses
• Stagecoach
• The Bradbury Centre
• The Durness Bus Ltd
• Transport for Tongue Ltd
• Westerbus

Moray

• Ember
• Firnderne Development Trust
• Moray Council m.connect
• Stagecoach

Argyll and Bute (excluding Helensburgh and Lomond)

• B Mundell
• Citylink
• Ember
• Garelochhead Coaches
• Islay Coaches
• West Coast Motors

Orkney

• M & J Harcus
• Orkney Travel Limited
• Stagecoach
• Westray and Sanday Development Trust services

Shetland

• Andrew G S Morrison t/a Andrews
• Boddams cabs
• J A & D Nicholson
• J & DS Halcrow
• J & K Scollay
• Johnson Transport
• K & K Transport
• Martins Car Hire
• R Robertson & Son
• Shetland Islands council
• Sinclairs Taxis
• Westbus
• Whites Coaches
• Wilma Ann Nicolson

Western Isles

• Bus na Comhairle
• Hebridean Transport
• Lochs Motor
• M Maciver

Multi-area operators

Some operators provide services across multiple fare cap areas:

• Citylink
• Ember
• Parks of Hamilton
• Stagecoach
• West Coast Motors

If you are unsure whether your route is included, contact the operator before travelling.

Where the fare cap applies

From Monday 7 September, the fare cap in Strathclyde operates in the following local authority areas:

• Argyll and Bute
• East Ayrshire
• East Dunbartonshire
• East Renfrewshire
• Glasgow City
• Inverclyde
• North Ayrshire
• North Lanarkshire
• Renfrewshire
• South Ayrshire
• South Lanarkshire
• West Dunbartonshire

Journey examples

The cost of your fare depends on whether your journey is wholly or partly within the fare cap area, and whether you require multiple buses to undertake your journey. For example;

• Travelling on a single service from Kirkintilloch to Glasgow? The fare cap applies and you’ll pay £2.

• Need to take three services from Paisley to Troon? The fare cap applies for each service you travel on and you’ll pay £6.

• Going from Cumbernauld to Falkirk? You’ll pay £2 for the part of your journey within North Lanarkshire and the normal fare for the remainder of your journey. The fare will be calculated automatically by your operator.

Participating operators

The following operators currently participate in the Strathclyde scheme:

• ARG Travel Ltd t/a Coakley
• Avondale Coaches
• Canavan Travel
• Citylink
• Climate Action Strathaven
• Colchri
• Ember Core
• First Glasgow
• Garelochhead Coaches
• Hobson Travel
• Houstons Mini Coaches
• JMB Travel
• McColls Travel
• McGills / McGills Midland Bluebird
• McNairns Coaches
• Parks of Hamilton
• Scottish Borders Council Buses
• Shuttle Buses
• South Ayrshire Community Transport
• Stagecoach
• Stuarts Coaches
• Todds Travel
• West Coast Motors
• Whitelaws Coaches
• Wilsons of Rhu

The following operator has confirmed they will be participating from Monday 14 September;

• PVT

Additional operators will join the scheme in the coming weeks. This page will be updated as further operators and services become available.

If you are unsure whether your route is included, contact your operator before travelling.

The Scottish Government is taking a phased approach to delivering a nationwide £2 Bus Fare Cap.

The Highlands and Islands rollout has already demonstrated strong demand, with more than one million passenger journeys made under the scheme and average savings of more than £6 per journey.

The expansion into Strathclyde represents the next major step towards nationwide implementation. The area covers a significant proportion of Scotland’s population and bus patronage and will provide valuable evidence on how the scheme operates in a large urban transport network, informing the design of the nationwide scheme.

The Scottish Government remains committed to bringing forward legislation for a permanent nationwide £2 Bus Fare Cap before the end of this Parliament. Whilst there is currently no confirmed timetable for expansion into other areas of Scotland, updates will be published on this webpage when further information is available.

If you are unsure if your route is included, please contact your bus operator directly to check before travelling.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do concessionary cardholders still travel free?

Yes. Passengers aged under 22, over 60 and those with an eligible disability can continue to travel free of charge using a National Entitlement Card (NEC) or Young Scot NEC.

Does the fare cap apply to return tickets?

No. The fare cap applies to eligible single adult and child bus tickets only.

Can visitors use the fare cap?

Yes. There is no residency requirement. The fare cap is available to anyone travelling on an eligible participating service.

Are all bus operators included?

No. Participation is voluntary and operators choose whether to participate in the scheme. Check with your operator before travelling if you are unsure.

General enquiries

For general information contact us using the details below:

£2 Bus Fare Cap
Transport Scotland
177 Bothwell Street
Glasgow
G2 7ER

Stakeholders

Our Stakeholder Toolkit provides information and resources for key bus operators, local authorities, community groups and partner organisations to help promote the £2 Bus Fare Cap.