Free bus and rail passes and improved cycle routes are being introduced across Scotland as part of a £15 million initiative that kicked off today.
Seven local authorities are participating in the Smarter Choices, Smarter Places (SCSP) scheme, aimed at encouraging greener travel, reducing carbon emissions and boosting physical activity levels.
Each project, funded by the Scottish Government, will introduce a raft of localised measures including large and small-scale infrastructure improvements, personalised travel planning, enhanced public transport links, free trial bus and rail passes, car sharing schemes and the development of better walking and cycling routes.
Scotland’s Minister for Transport, Infrastructure and Climate Change, Stewart Stevenson, said: “Persuading people out of their cars and onto more sustainable forms of travel such as trains, buses, walking and cycling is fundamental to changing Scotland’s travel habits for the better.”
Research carried out by the University of Aberdeen shows the public is in support of greener transport schemes. The university will continue to monitor the effects of the plan over the next two years.
The projects, based in Dundee, Glasgow’s East End, Falkirk, Dumfries, East Renfrewshire, East Dunbartonshire and Orkney, follow on from the success of similar schemes run in England.
From 2004 to 2008, Darlington, Peterborough and Worcester received £10 million from the Department of Transport to become sustainable travel demonstration towns. The trial was a huge success and resulted in a nine percent reduction in car use, which is equal to around 53 million miles of car use and 17,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide saved annually. The towns saw a jump in bus and bicycle use, and the Scottish initiative is expected to produce even better results.
Stevenson added: “Similar schemes, like those in Darlington, Peterborough and Worcester, have delivered impressive results, transforming the travel behaviour of thousands of their residents and this is what we want to achieve.
“Initiatives such as those being taken forward through Smarter Choices, Smarter Places will help to promote healthier, cheaper, safer and greener travel choices, allowing more people to enjoy the benefits of increased physical activity while reducing their carbon footprint.
“Our projects could result in a catalyst for change right across Scotland.”
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