Statement of the steps taken by Transport Scotland to promote and increase sustainable growth through the exercise of its functions in the period

We remain focused on our priorities to deliver a transport system that reduces inequality, takes climate action, helps deliver inclusive economic growth, and improves our health and wellbeing. Our actions continue to be underpinned by both the Sustainable Travel Hierarchy and the Sustainable Investment Hierarchy.

We remain committed to building on many of the positive changes in travel behaviours witnessed throughout and post pandemic, and to retaining a strong focus on more sustainable active travel options, including making better use of existing infrastructure before investing in new capacity, and reinforcing our policy of Sustainable Travel and Investment, and promoting walking, cycling, shared transport options in preference to private car use.

Over the year, Transport Scotland has contributed to the sustainable growth agenda in the following ways:

  • The Access Bikes project has created great opportunities for those experiencing financial hardship to access a bike, standard and adapted bikes were gifted, and an adapted e-bike library in partnership with Spinal Injury Scotland was opened.
  • The Highland Spring’s rail freight project will remove a minimum of ten million lorry miles from Scotland’s roads in the first 10 years of operation.
  • Preparation of four Low Emission Zones in Glasgow (opened in June 2023), Edinburgh, Dundee, and Aberdeen. £5.5m of Grant Funding provided to Energy Savings Trust and Local Authorities.
  • Over 200 walking and cycling infrastructure projects in progress through the zero Everyone Programme with approved funding of £176 million.
  • Our investment in Active Travel supported over 235 Places for Everyone Projects, over 40 km of new and improved routes on the National Cycle Network and the delivery of Cycling Walking Safer Routes projects across thirty-two local authorities.
  • Reston station opened in May 2022, and we continued to maintain and enhance Scotland’s railway, including on-going electrification and decarbonisation through our Rail Services Decarbonisation Plan, and subsidised the operation of ScotRail and Caledonian Sleeper Services.
  • The Young Persons’ Free Bus Travel Scheme saw almost 5.7 million journeys from 609,000 cardholders and a 65% overall uptake at 31 March 2023.
  • The Project CAVForth will provide a globally significant demonstration of UK autonomous bus capability along a 14-mile route across the Forth Road Bridge between Fife and Edinburgh
  • Phase 5 of the Bus Emissions Abatement Retrofit Programme (BEAR) supported licenced bus and coach operators (including community transport operators and local authorities) to reduce nitrogen oxide (NOx) and particulate matter (PM) emissions of existing eligible fleet vehicles.
  • £30 million to support the shift to zero emission transport, through continued funding ScotZEB Phase 1 and Low Carbon Transport Programmes, such as Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Fund and Switched on Fleets.
  • In 2022-23 around thirteen thousand trains moved over four million tonnes of goods, saving millions of lorry miles in Scotland. 50% of these trains were electrically hauled.
  • Our Operating Companies constructed five drainage improvement schemes and one watercourse realignment scheme in areas that are vulnerable to climate risks, such as flooding, slope failure and landslides. These schemes delivered engineering solutions that go beyond maintenance, which adapt the network to the current and future impacts of climate change.
  • We implemented Perceptual Rider Information for Maximising Expertise and Enjoyment (PRIME) markings. These help riders make better decisions to adapt their riding when approaching bends. This project is considered the most in-depth investigation of motorcycle rider behaviour in the world. Since the start of the trials, there has been a significant reduction in speed, improvements in breaking and road position behaviours and no motorcycle injury collisions where PRIME markings have been deployed.