Transport Scotland – Who we are and what we do
Transport Scotland (TS) is the national transport agency, delivering the Scottish Government’s (SG) vision for transport. In Scotland we carry out a number of functions in relation to transport including:
- overseeing the inspection, maintenance, operation and improvement of Trunk Roads;
- overseeing aspects of the ferry, canal and railway networks;
- provision of rail and ferry services;
- we own Highlands and Islands Airports Limited and Glasgow Prestwick Airport;
- we help to secure international air routes for Scotland; and,
- deliver the national concessionary travel schemes and the provision of network traffic and travel information services.
TS currently has 9 Directorates. 5 of these specifically deal with different areas of the transport network in Scotland, such as road and rail, and another four cross cutting Directorates that cover transport strategy, policy, programmes and corporate services. These are shown in Figure 1.
Figure 1 - Transport Scotland’s Directorates and functions
Low Carbon Economy
Responsible for working across Government and with our partners and stakeholders, to create the conditions for Scotland to lead in and benefit from the shift to ultra-low emission vehicles.
Major Projects
Responsible for the design, development, procurement and construction of major trunk road improvement projects across Scotland, along with providing procurement advice across the organisation.
Roads
Responsible for the safe operation of the trunk road network, roads policy, air quality and the environment, transport resilience and transport planning for major events.
Rail
Responsible for Scotland's rail policy, specification and development as well as the funding of Scotland's rail infrastructure, passenger and freight services through rail industry delivery partners.
Bus, Accessibility and Active Travel
Responsible for the Scottish Government's policy relating to bus, active travel, smart and integrated ticketing and accessible travel.
Transport Strategy and Analysis
Responsible for transport strategy and integration, transport futures, transport analysis and strategic transport planning.
Aviation, Maritime, Freight and Canals
Promotes Scotland's international connectivity and transport links to our remote island communities.
Finance and Corporate Services
Provides core services and advice in finance, human resources, learning and development, information technology, facilities, health and safety, chief executive support, communications and corporate governance.
Ferries
Promoting connectivity of our islands and remote communities through contract management, vessel and infrastructure replacement and the Islands Connectivity Plan.
This corporate structure delivers operational, strategic and policy-based actions across a number of transport areas including infrastructure, public transport, active travel and freight. TS works closely with a number of stakeholders and partners in this regard.