Schedule Part 4 - Marketing and Ticketing
FINAL - SIGNED ON 23/09/25
Marketing Plan
CFL shall produce, publish, and implement a Marketing Plan outlining the necessary resources to effectively execute the Marketing Plan.
The Marketing Plan should include but is not limited to:
Data-informed omni-channel marketing campaigns that inspire, educate and inform existing and potential travelers.
Activity linked to tourism, island and known calendar events which appropriately manage flow to and from the network.
Plans to react to rises and falls in travelers or other impacts on the service in a proactive way.
Partnership promotions across relevant channels with stakeholders and appropriate third parties.
Measurement and reporting of impact and cost-effectiveness of all activity.
Staff and resources are proposed to develop, implement, and update the plan fully.
Deliverables and Milestones
- CFL is required to provide all deliverables and meet all milestones outlined in Table 18. Additionally, CFL may propose additional deliverables and milestones for approval by Scottish Ministers.
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Deliverable/Milestone |
Delivery Date |
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1.1.1. CFL shall produce, publish, implement and provide a Marketing Plan every year to Scottish Ministers. |
Annually with effect from the Commencement Date |
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1.1.2. CFL shall ensure pricing and concessions are prominent in marketing communications |
Ongoing |
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1.1.3. CFL shall endeavour to have co-operation with complementary tourism, transport and economic services provided by local businesses |
Ongoing |
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1.1.4. CFL shall transparently communicate all ticketing options and concessions as per the Agreement, through all channels. |
Ongoing |
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1.1.5. CFL should regularly review and amend their conditions of carriage as appropriate. |
Ongoing |
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1.1.6. CFL shall develop and test a number of promotional options that may help to manage demand. |
Ongoing |
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CFL shall create a rolling annual calendar of anticipated events and festivities. |
Ongoing |
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CFL should review the effectiveness of marketing activities. |
Ongoing |
Booking System
CFL shall operate a central information and reservations system for the Services for the Grant Period that shall be fit for ferry users’ purposes. The system CFL shall utilise for bookings is E-Booking unless otherwise agreed by Scottish Ministers. CFL will be expected to work alongside the technical service provider to continue to maintain and refine the services, ensuring ongoing improvements for passengers.
Smart and Integrated Ticketing
- CFL shall produce, publish, and implement a comprehensive plan for implementing Smart and Integrated Ticketing including utilising the SM E-Booking System. This will comply with Scottish Ministers statutory guidance for ticketing.
- The plan should be developed with the information included in this paragraph 3 and in paragraph 4 below.
- CFL should note that a key part of the ticket provision for this Agreement will revolve around smart and integrated ticketing and payment, including the expansion of smart concessionary travel to ferry services, and enhancing data flows to the Digital Travel Data Services (travel data hub used by Traveline Scotland and other 3rd party journey planners).
- The Scottish Ministers vision is: “To increase the use of sustainable public transport by providing smart and integrated ticketing, payment, and journey planning data enhancements, contributing to a healthier, fairer and more prosperous Scotland” Scottish Ministers have an established Smart Delivery Strategy for the deployment of smart and integrated ticketing across Scotland which was refreshed in 2024. This highlights the requirement for smart, integrated ticketing and payment to be available, affordable and accessible across all modes of transport and it is expected that CFL will actively support and work towards this vision.
- In this Schedule Part, ‘smart’ means non-paper and / or cashless travel (e.g. using your bank card to ‘tap in / out’ of a journey). In Scotland this means using a micro-chipped smartcard, mobile app ticket or contactless payment for travel purposes.
- CFL will be required to work with Regional Transport Partnerships, local authorities and public transport operators of other smart ticketing arrangements, schemes, and systems within the CHFS area (as set out in Figures 1 and 2 in Schedule Part 1) who may have already, or wish to implement, smart multi-modal ticketing schemes. CFL shall not unreasonably withhold consent to such propositions.
- CFL is required to establish and maintain a partnership with ScotRail to enable delivery of integrated ticketing, and other improvements, for a better integrated public transport network. It is expected that similar partnership or agreements will be entered into with further public transport operators to expand on the benefits that these partnerships will bring to the passenger.
- CFL should develop a ticketing delivery plan in line with the aspirations and aims detailed in the 2024 Smart Delivery Strategy.
- CFL should participate in, and lead when instructed by Scottish Ministers, collaborative, multi-modal forums and initiatives, including, for example, the National Smart Ticketing Advisory Board, Operators Smart Steering Group, CFL Smart Steering Group, and the ScotRail/CHFS CFL partnership.
Deliverables and Milestones
Provide Smart Integrated Ticketing (Rail and Bus)
Overarching Requirements:
- CFL is required to work with ScotRail to retail and provide Rail & Sail ticketing on a smart platform that aligns with ScotRail and Scottish Ministers interoperable smart ticketing and payment requirements. This could include ITSO, barcode, MaaS and other future smart ticketing platforms as they emerge, for example contactless payment as a token for travel. In addition, the coverage of Rail & Sail tickets should increase to cover all connecting rail and Routes.
- To encourage increased public transport use by visitors, CFL should lead work with other public transport operators to reintroduce CHFS services to the previously removed integrated tourist tickets, including ‘Scottish Grand Tour’, ‘Highland Rover’ and ‘Spirit of Scotland’ tickets, and similar integrated tourist tickets, including tourist tickets with other operators such as West Coast Motors. CFL should also work with other public transport operators to provide these tourist tickets on a smart platform.
- CFL shall establish ticketing reporting metrics to be agreed with Scottish Ministers by 6 months of the date of Agreement commencement to measure the sales of these tickets.
- CFL is required to provide all deliverables and meet all milestones outlined in Table 19, subject to full participation from all relevant stakeholders, as required. Additionally, CFL may propose additional deliverables and milestones for approval by the Scottish Ministers.
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Deliverable/Milestone |
Delivery Date |
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2.12.1. CFL to utilise Scottish Ministers booking system, E-Booking System |
Ongoing |
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2.12.2. CFL to produce, publish, and implement a Smart and Integrated Ticketing Plan |
First Quarter, first Financial Year and reviewed annually thereafter |
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2.12.3. CFL shall ensure that smart ticketing is available for all CHFS ticket types from the commencement of the Agreement, unless by exception listed. |
Commencement Date |
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2.12.4. CFL shall establish ticketing reporting metrics to be agreed with Scottish Ministers |
6 months from Agreement commencement |
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2.12.5. Retail and accept paper Rail & Sail and tourist tickets for at least routes; Mull, Skye and the Outer Hebrides: Travel from stations in Scotland to: · Craignure on Mull via Oban · Castlebay on Barra via Oban · Lochboisdale on South Uist via Oban · Armadale on Skye via Mallaig · Stornoway on Lewis via Inverness, and a coach from Inverness to Ullapool The Clyde Coast: Travel from stations in Scotland to: · Dunoon (Cowal) via Gourock · Rothesay (Bute) via Weymss Bay · Brodick (Arran) via Ardrossan/Troon Harbour (Temporarily) · Campbeltown via Ardrossan Harbour · Cumbrae via Largs |
Stage 1 (12 months) |
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2.12.6. Confirm the tourist tickets that were accepted by CFL in 2019 and restore tourist ticket paper acceptance for the Routes to at least that provision. |
Stage 1 (12 months) |
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2.12.7. Establish a working group, which meets at least monthly until the project is delivered, with ScotRail, Scottish Ministers and Hitrans and public transport operators. |
Stage 1 (12 months) |
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2.12.8. Agree scope for feasibility study (to commence in Stage 1) to provide a single digital Rail & Sail ticket and digital integrated tourist tickets without the need for passenger to show multiple tickets, and that can be retailed by any party. Delivery of a single interoperable barcode standard will be developed via work of the Scottish National Smart Ticketing Advisory Board and the UK wide Smart Transport Advisory Group; this requirement should be cognisant of the work being undertaken by these groups. |
Stage 1 (12 months) |
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2.12.9. Increase Rail & Sail offering by including all routes. Routes that connect with the following rail stations - Ardrossan Harbour, Largs, Wemyss Bay, Gourock, Oban, Mallaig, Ullapool (via coach to Inverness). |
Stage 2 (24 months) |
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2.12.10. CFL shall ensure all Rail & Sail tickets are available in some form of smart ticketing via a single transaction, as; a) two separate digital tickets (rail and ferry) hosted in a single app via a single purchase – or a single barcode ticket should this be available in future as noted in 3.12.13; b) a Rail & Sail ticket on an ITSO smartcard. |
Stage 2 (24 months) |
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2.12.11. Commence with Scottish Ministers and agreed stakeholders the feasibility study, outlined in 3.12.8. |
Stage 2 (24 months) |
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2.12.12. Report on the feasibility study with ScotRail, commenced in 3.12.8 |
Stage 2 (24 months) |
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2.12.13. Establish a single digital Rail & Sail ticket and tourist tickets, without the need to show multiple tickets, that can be retailed by any party within a timeframe agreed with Scottish Ministers. |
Stage 3 (36 months) |
Booking and Travel Information APIs for Third Parties (e.g. MaaS Apps)
Deliverables and Milestones
- CFL is required to provide all deliverables and meet all milestones outlined in Table 20, subject to full participation from all relevant stakeholders, as required. Additionally, CFL may propose additional deliverables and milestones for approval by Scottish Ministers.
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Deliverable/Milestone |
Delivery Date |
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2.13.1. CFL is to provide booking retail, journey planning and real time travel Information APIs for third parties |
In first Financial Year. |
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2.13.2. Seek to innovate and improve on open data information provision, as pertains to Scottish Ministers aspirations to support better passenger information, for example, automated accessibility, facilities or carbon emissions data. |
In first Financial Year. |
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2.13.3. Provide open API feeds from the ferry CFL system, including to Traveline Scotland, to provide timetable, route and disruptions information. Agree with Scottish Ministers and Traveline Scotland the data standard and data integration for this. |
Stage 1 (12 months) |
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2.13.4. Provide open automated fares data to Traveline Scotland for all passenger fares and journeys, including integrated ticket fares. |
Stage 2 (24 months) |
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2.13.5. Commence a feasibility study on real-time vessel monitoring to provide real-time and estimated arrival and departure times, as well as real-time capacity of services and for this data to be open for third parties and Traveline Scotland. |
Stage 2 (24 months) |
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2.13.6. Report on the feasibility study on real-time vessel monitoring to provide real-time and estimated arrival and departure times and capacity information. |
Stage 2 (24 months) |
Provide Open Data APIs to Automatically Update for Traveline Scotland Systems or other third-party providers.
- CFL is to Provide Open Data APIs (Fares, Timetable, Location/Realtime, Disruption, Retail) to Automatically Update for Traveline Scotland Systems and other users. These should meet most recent Ferry Gateway standards or equivalent as agreed with Scottish Ministers.
- Scottish Ministers have procured a new Digital Travel Data Service[1] for Traveline Scotland and other third-party journey planners, which enhances data collection and processing to deliver enhanced journey planning open data, including on timetable, fares and real time information. In addition, Scottish Ministers are also progressing development of open data legislation for bus operators to increase the quality and consistency of bus open data on timetable, fares and real time information. As such, Scottish Ministers expect CFL to provide enhanced travel data to align to these wider improvements in journey planning data.
- CHFS data on fares and timetables is currently only available in a PDF/printed format which, whilst openly available to the public, makes automatic updates for third party journey planners impossible. Traveline Scotland is required to manually update all ferry service information to be available for their system, which is in turn openly available for use by third party journey planners.
- To bring the ferry services in line with other modes, CFL should provide an open E-Booking data API including timetable and fares data, meaning data via journey planners would be more up to date and more reactive to short notice changes.
- Furthermore, to enhance journey planning, CFL should openly provide real time information for services, including real time (and estimated real-time) departure and arrival times, real time capacity information, and on disruption information. This real time and disruption information would also feed via API to Traveline Scotland, and other third-party journey planners allowing for information, retail and fulfilment exchange.
Deliverables and Milestones
- CFL is required to provide all deliverables and meet all milestones outlined in Table 22, subject to full participation from all relevant stakeholders, as required. Additionally, CFL may propose additional deliverables and milestones for approval by Scottish Ministers.
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Deliverable/Milestone |
Delivery Date |
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3.18.2 CFL is to provide open API feeds from the ferry CFL system, including to Traveline Scotland, to provide timetable, Route, and disruptions information. |
In first Financial Year. |
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3.18.3 CFL to provide open automated fares data to Traveline Scotland and other third-party travel providers for all passenger fares and journeys, including integrated ticket fares, for information and onward retail. |
In second Financial Year. |
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3.18.4 CFL to Report on the feasibility study on real-time vessel monitoring to provide real-time and estimated arrival and departure times, and real time capacity information. |
In second Financial Year |
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3.18.5 Deliver on real-time and estimated arrival and departure times, including disruptions, and real time capacity information via API, using Ferry Gateway or other standard as agreed with Scottish Ministers |
In third year of service |
Integrate with the National Concessionary Travel Schemes Using the Relevant Smart Platform (Currently ITSO) Utilising the Transport Scotland ITSO Back Office Systems
- CFL is to integrate with the National Concessionary Travel Schemes using the relevant Smart Platform (currently ITSO) utilising the Transport Scotland ITSO back-office systems.
- The National Concessionary Travel Schemes provide ferry vouchers to a number of Islanders who are entitled to free bus travel (currently over 60, disabled, volunteers under 26 and young people aged 16-18). These two return ferry vouchers will be provided using an ITSO platform (currently the system uses paper vouchers however these are being replaced with digital vouchers loaded on the ITSO smartcard).
- Overarching Requirements: CFL shall integrate with the Transport Scotland ITSO back office to enable accurate recording of digital concessionary vouchers. This should be achieved using an ITSO certified device (2.1.5). ITSO handheld devices will provide ITSO transactions from the digital ferry vouchers to Transport Scotland ITSO back-office systems sending the required concessionary information to enable reimbursement of the journeys to be paid. There are currently devices that are live and in use in the ferry environment that will deliver this requirement. Transport Scotland has completed a pilot project to establish this process in Shetland and Orkney and would look to replicate in the Western Isles / CHFS regions.
- In addition, the Fair Fares Review includes the development of proposals to provide free foot passenger travel on inter-island ferries for under 22-year-old island residents within the Outer Hebrides, Orkney, and Shetland Island groups, and proposals to extend the existing national ferry concessionary scheme to under-22-year-old island residents. CFL shall work with Transport Scotland to implement any extension to the scheme.
- CFL may propose innovative incentives, products and media to achieve the targets set out above.
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Deliverable/Milestone |
Delivery Date |
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4.1.1 Integration with the Transport Scotland concessionary travel systems using ITSO smart media or any other medium as required by Scottish Ministers, or for future commercial integrated ticketing aspirations as required by Scottish Ministers and advised at the National Smart Ticketing Advisory Board. This should also enable accurate and auditable reimbursement and reporting. |
By October 2026 |
Improving access and interchange
- CFL shall produce, publish, and implement a comprehensive Access and Interchange Plan, in relation to improving access and interchange which should show separately in a structured format for, but not limited to:
- Co-operation with complementary services provided by other service operators.
- The support and promotion of Integrated transport including co-ordination with Route and service development by other transport operators.
- CFL shall, engage with other public transport operator representatives from local bus and rail operators as appropriate.
- The remit for CFL should include, but is not limited to:
- Scope, implement and report on OCT initiatives.
- Assess the current state at ports and on vessels and identify opportunities to improve OCT – this could include, for example, an assessment of current state of signage at Ports and smart ticketing opportunities.
- Review progress and risks of ongoing OCT schemes and projects.
- Review multi-modal ticketing provisions in relation to OCT.
- Review integration of Timetables.
- Review the performance of existing OCT provisions, including review of real-time performance data to ensure continued benefit is realised, and look for opportunities in relation to existing OCT provisions.
- Support and participate in the work of the new Transport Integration and Connectivity Directorate
Deliverables and Milestones
- CFL is required to provide all deliverables and meet all milestones outlined in Table 24. Additionally, CFL may propose additional deliverables and milestones for approval by Scottish Ministers.
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Deliverable/Milestone |
Delivery Date |
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4.10.1 CFL to produce, publish, and implement an Access and Interchange Plan for improving access and interchange |
Within first six months of financial year |
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4.10.2 Permit other ferry operators to advertise CFLs timetables. |
Ongoing |
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4.10.3 CFL shall liaise with bus and rail operators to agree contingency arrangements in event of delayed sailings |
Ongoing |
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4.10.4 CFL shall co-operate with relevant tourist organisations and work closely with tourist boards and to participate in local initiatives |
Ongoing |
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4.10.5 CFL shall consult Regional Transport Partnerships and Councils (Westerns Isles, Highland, Argyll and Bute, North Ayrshire), when implementing permanent changes to the timetable as Scottish Ministers require |
Ongoing |
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4.10.6 Participation in local community liaison by CFL as required by Scottish Ministers |
Ongoing |
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4.10.7 CFL to publish and make publicly available to ferry users a summary of performance statistics, and produce and publish a detailed annual report |
Ongoing and annually |