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Chapter 2
2. National Policy Context for Park and Ride
Introduction
2.1 The context for Park and Ride within key national policies is described in this Chapter.
Government Objectives and National Outcomes
2.2 The Framework has been developed within the context of the Scottish Government's published Purpose: that is to focus Government and public services on creating a more successful country, with opportunities for all of Scotland to flourish, through increasing sustainable economic growth".
2.3 The strategic approach consists of:
- the overall Purpose;
- five Strategic Objectives - embedded within which are five Strategic Priorities that are internationally recognised as being critical to sustainable economic growth; and
- national targets - which include specific benchmarks for economic growth and golden rules for ensuring that growth is shared and sustainable.
Figure 1 illustrates how all these elements interact with each other and fit together.
Figure 1: The Strategic Approach
2.3 Of the Scottish Government's five Strategic Objectives, the provision of strategic Park and Ride facilities can contribute directly towards the following:
- help local communities to flourish, becoming a stronger, safer place to live, offering improved opportunities and a better quality of life;
- improve Scotland's natural and built environment and the sustainable use and enjoyment of it; and
- help people to sustain and improve their health, especially in disadvantaged communities, ensuring better, local and faster access to health care.
2.4 Park and Ride will also contribute to the following national indicators and targets which support the delivery of the strategic objectives:
- Reduce the proportion of driver journeys delayed due to traffic congestion;
- Increase the proportion of journeys to work made by public or active transport
National Transport Strategy
2.5 A strategic approach to Park and Ride fits within the context of Scotland's National Transport Strategy ( NTS) published in December 2006. The three transport specific outcomes which the NTS aims to achieve, are to:
- improve journey times and connections to tackle congestion and the lack of integration and connections in transport;
- improve quality, accessibility and affordability, to give people a choice of public transport, where availability means better quality transport services and value for money or an alternative to the car; and
- reduce emissions to tackle the issues of climate change, air quality and health improvement.
2.6 The NTS refers to Park and Ride at Para 103:
" Infrastructure measures on local and trunk roads are key to improving bus journey times. These include on-road demand management measures (bus priority measures, bus lanes on key arterial corridors, Park and Ride, traffic management systems and Bus Rapid Transit on segregated sections of roadway)…"
and on page 31:
"You told us………You recognised that parking policy and Park and Ride were key and already being successful but that more could be done."
2.7 One of the key commitments of the National Transport Strategy was to take forward the Strategic Transport Projects Review ( STPR), based on the key strategic outcomes for National Transport Strategy. Further information on the STPR can be found in Chapter 10.
Bus Action Plan
2.8 This Framework is one of the key steps in taking forward the actions in the NTS' daughter document Moving into the Future: An Action Plan for Buses (Bus Action Plan - BAP), which was updated and endorsed at the High Level Bus Forum of senior bus stakeholders chaired by the Minister for Transport, Infrastructure and Climate Change on 11 March 2008. The framework also has the support of the Bus Action Plan Steering Group overseeing the implementation of the BAP, which includes representatives from bus operators, Authorities, Transport Scotland and appropriate regulatory and user bodies.
2.9 Effective partnership working between local government and bus operators will play a significant role in the achievement of these objectives. The principle of partnership between central and local government, as defined by the new Concordat between the Scottish Government and COSLA, underpins the National Performance Framework. Central to this is the development of Single Outcome Agreements ( SOAs) between the Scottish Government and individual Community Planning Partnerships, led by the 32 local councils in Scotland. As with bus improvements, new or improved Park and Ride infrastructure may be signalled within SOAs as contributing to the delivery of the National Outcomes.
Scotland's Railways
2.10 Published in December 2006, Scotland's Railways recognises the potential role the integration of transport modes can play in contributing to reducing emissions (one of the strategic outcomes from the National Transport Strategy). It states at paragraph 9.19:
"Effective integration with other transport modes will play a part in reducing total transport emissions…It is critical that (rail) station and service design makes interchange with other forms of public transport easier. We seek to encourage the use of feeder bus services to and from rail stations and more opportunities for passengers to walk or cycle to stations. These measures and integration of cleaner buses and trains will improve air quality."
Climate Change
2.11 The Scottish Government is committed to reducing carbon emissions by 80% by the year 2050. Road transport is the most significant emitter (83%) within the domestic transport sector, with cars being the primary source of emissions, and bus accounts for 4% though with the advantage of carrying more passengers per journey. It is vital that steps are taken to reduce emissions from road transport. Modal shift to more sustainable transport is one positive means by which this can be achieved.
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