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Context and challenges

1.1 Transport is one of our most vital public services, influencing our economy, our communities, our environment, our health and our quality of life. It touches all our lives: it connects people to jobs, family and friends, students to learning, customers to services, businesses to suppliers, products to markets, and Scotland to the world.

1.2 A transport system that serves people and businesses well is fundamental to achieving our vision of a prosperous and socially-just Scotland.

1.3 Connections create opportunities in trade, employment, education, shopping, health and leisure, enabling people to live full and active lives. For many transport is a lifeline, whether it is the ferry that links islanders to the mainland or the low-floor bus that enables the wheelchair user to get to the shops. Improving accessibility for people and places is central to closing the opportunity gap, building strong communities and creating an environment for innovation and success.

1.4 Transport supports all sectors of the economy ­ enabling firms and organisations in the public, private and voluntary sectors to do their job. Transport itself makes an important contribution to the Scottish economy, directly accounting for around 7% of GDP and employing over 100,000 people¹. Central and local government, the private sector and voluntary organisations all have a role in planning and delivering transport. Scotland benefits from the services offered by many first-rate transport and logistics companies and is home to some of the most significant international transport organisations. We want to encourage their success and ensure they have a central role in providing services, infrastructure and financing.

1.5 This document emphasises the importance of all with a stake in transport working together to achieve common goals. It follows on from extensive consultation and sets out the Scottish Executive’s ambitions for improving the planning and delivery of transport at a local, regional and national level. Our aim is better-quality transport services for all. We need to modernise and reform our delivery structures if we are to provide the best possible services. Progress at regional level can bring major advantages for Scotland’s transport, building on the best of what we already have and learning from what has been done well in regions and positive experiences of joint working between local, regional and national players.

Scotland’s geography
1.6 Our communities vary from large cities, to small towns and villages, to remote rural areas. The central belt is highly urbanised with population density of 33 people per hectare in Glasgow. That contrasts with large areas of the country that are more than 2 hours’ drive from a major town, 96 inhabited islands and several remote peninsulas. The Highlands have a population density of around 0.08 people per hectare. This diversity is reflected in a range of transport systems: our bus and coach services, community transport, taxis and private hire cars, cycleways, railways, subway, long and short ferry and air routes, motorways and single-track roads.

1.7 The accessibility of rural areas has a significant impact on their local economies and social wellbeing. Rural areas face different challenges, but connections, locally and to other parts of Scotland are important for all. For remote and island communities, the availability and cost of air and ferry services has an impact not just on passenger traffic, but also on the ability of businesses to export and the cost of imports. Tourism is a major industry for many rural areas and the quality and availability of transport connections affects their competitiveness.

1.8 Improving transport in our towns and cities is vital to their future prosperity. Good public transport connections reduce traffic congestion and provide an efficient and sustainable way to move goods and get to work. Our framework for Scotland’s cities² emphasises the role of cities as drivers of economic growth. Effective transport links play an essential role in their continuing ability to achieve this growth, providing an attractive environment for business and tourism and a good quality of life. The right transport links can also have a crucial role in generating growth for our most disadvantaged communities, by connecting them to economic and other opportunities, therefore aiding their long-term regeneration. Achieving greater economic activity in these communities will be a key element in ensuring the sustainable growth of the wider economy.

National Planning Framework
1.9 The planning system, at both a national and local level, aims to resolve competing demands for resources and land, achieving a balanced and sustainable outcome. The National Planning Framework for Scotland³ sets out a framework to guide the spatial development of Scotland to 2025: improving connectivity and promoting sustainable patterns of transport and land use. It recognises that planning and transport are inextricably linked: planning decisions can influence the demand for transport and play an important role in promoting accessibility and more sustainable travel. Transport will be an important element in achieving economic growth and regeneration in the key areas identified by the National Planning Framework.

1.10 Transport has to be planned strategically, taking account of travel to work areas, transport corridors and recognising the regional dimension. We believe that this is best achieved through a national transport strategy along with integrated regional transport strategies, developed by regional transport partnerships, which build on the current voluntary joint-working arrangements. Research carried out for the Scottish Executive indicates that in other parts of Europe regional structures are delivering integration, improving services and persuading funders to invest in regional projects⁴.

1.11 Travel is one of the Executive’s three priority areas for sustainable development set out in its document Meeting the Needs⁵. The Scottish Executive supports the principle that development should meet the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. The planning system plays an important role in achieving this and our planning policies support developments that respect our environment, reduce the need to travel, promote public transport, cycling and walking, and encourage freight to be moved by rail or water.

Trends
1.12 This document is candid about the problems we face. In recent decades in Scotland there has been a history of neglect of the rail network, reductions in bus services and lack of investment in road maintenance. The transport vision of previous governments was too often dominated by the private car. Historic under-investment has left a huge backlog of work to do. We are now reversing this decline, with a major £3 billion capital programme of transport investment over ten years.

1.13 Although Scotland’s population is projected to decrease, the number of households is expected to rise. Current predictions suggest there will be more single-person households and we could see more people owning cars. At the same time an ageing population will also present challenges for meeting the particular needs of older people. For instance 74% of single pensioner households do not have access to a car⁶ and this is one reason why our concessionary bus travel schemes for older and disabled people are proving so popular.

1.14 The last 10 years have seen a steady increase in road traffic volumes. People are travelling further and for longer every day. In 1985/86 Scots drove on average about 5 miles a day per head, in 2000 they drove about 10 miles⁷. Allied to the fact that 86% of car or van commuters travel alone⁸, this places a considerable strain on our networks. The main radial routes into our biggest cities, such as the A90, A8 and A80, have seen significant rises in traffic volumes, leading to increased journey times and congestion. However, many people also choose to drive very short distances - 32% of people who commute less than 1 km to work travel by car or van⁹.

1.15 Unless action is taken, traffic is projected to increase by 27% over twenty years. Traffic growth has major economic, environmental and social costs, including longer journey times for people and products, reduced air quality, road accidents, impacts on health and contribution to climate change. Traffic congestion has huge costs for business and communities.

1.16 There are some encouraging trends. Rail and bus travel are experiencing increased passenger numbers, for example the Edinburgh-Glasgow rail service has seen a 68% increase in passengers since 1997. We want to encourage this, but to achieve success we must invest in our bus and rail infrastructure, encouraging more park and ride facilities, better bus lanes, new rail links and new or expanded bus and rail stations.

1.17 The number of people using public transport has declined dramatically since the 1960s at the expense of the private car use. However there has been an encouraging rise in passenger numbers on local bus services, with 445 million passenger journeys in 2002-03¹⁰, up almost 8% since 1998-99. This compares favourably with other parts of Europe and the challenge is to maintain growth.

1.18 The cost of motoring has steadily declined in real terms over the past 20 years while the cost of rail and bus fares has increased¹¹. The affordability of the car has helped many ­ especially in rural areas ­ but growth in car use has led to increasing car dependence, with a widening gap between the opportunities available to those with a car and those without. The affordability of public transport has a particular impact on the 35% of households that do not have access to a car for private use¹². Lack of access to a car rises to 67% in households earning less than £10,000 a year. This emphasises the importance of public transport to many of our most disadvantaged communities.

1.19 Reliability, frequency and quality are crucial to encouraging more people to use public transport. Among those who travel to work by car or van 47% say that they could use public transport instead¹³ but choose not to. Their main reasons are inconvenience, journeys taking too long, lack of direct routes, the need to have a car at work and cost. In contrast many people who do use public transport are satisfied with services. Among bus users 70% say they run on time (20% disagree), 77% say they are frequent (16% disagree) and 71% say the fares are good value (19% disagree); among train users 69% say they run on time (23% disagree), 75% say they are frequent (15% disagree) and 59% say the fares are good value (29% disagree)¹⁴. This still leaves significant room for improvement in public transport. Better services, new trains and buses, and improved integration will continue to be critical priorities over the next decade.

Challenges
1.20 Since 1999 the Scottish Executive has encouraged greater use of more sustainable forms of transport. Perhaps the biggest challenge we face is changing attitudes¹⁵ to transport choices where such choices exist. The car need not always be the automatic choice; a third of drivers say they would like to use their cars less¹⁶, but there may be no realistic alternatives. The quality of public transport can be variable but there are many excellent services and people enjoy many reliable and safe journeys. However, 45% of car drivers say they never use a bus or train¹⁷. Service improvements are making a difference but we have to work harder at changing perceptions and encourage more people to choose public transport. Providers also have to change their thinking, embrace innovation and reinforce a culture of high-quality customer service, and responsiveness.

1.21 We are striving to stabilise road traffic volumes at 2001 levels by 2021. If traffic levels continue to rise then congestion, increased journey times and reduced reliability will continue to act as constraints on the economy. Historically growth in the economy is accompanied by growth in traffic volumes. We need to break that link without hampering economic performance. Not all road use contributes to economic growth; some has a negative impact. There is scope to deliver reductions in traffic volumes through local and national interventions that will benefit local economies. We are committed to helping local authorities reduce traffic levels. Local authorities are required to assess local road traffic levels, forecast growth, and, where appropriate, set targets for reduction in absolute levels or the growth rate of levels. We will issue new guidance on achieving road traffic reduction. Improvements in public transport provision will have a positive effect but pricing and other measures may hold out a greater prospect of changing the pattern of road use.

1.22 Scotland is and always has been outward-looking and transport by definition plays the primary role in making physical connections to the rest of the world. Our trading connections, our cultural development, our leisure time and, for many, our family links draw us far beyond the confines of the nation, with 3.8 million overseas journeys made every year¹⁸, up 65% since 1993. The challenge is to make the most of existing links and facilitate the development of new links that allow us to play a full part in the global economy and the international community. That means looking towards the rest of the United Kingdom, the expanding Europe and beyond by making the most of the air, sea and rail links we have and stimulating new links that encourage new business developments and new visitors to Scotland. It also means using our devolved functions where we can to support the development of the Scottish international container hub port proposals and to build on the success of the Rosyth ferry link to Zeebrugge and the connections between Lerwick, Iceland, the Faroes and Norway.

1.23 By April 2006 the Scottish Executive and local authorities will together be spending around £1.5 billion each year on transport. This is a significant element of the overall Scottish Budget and must be spent wisely. There is a duty, as well as a challenge, to ensure that the resources made available by the tax-payer are spent in line with strategic objectives, sit within legislative provision and competence, are used in accordance with audit requirements and deliver value for money. Tools which are being used to meet the challenge include sound procurement procedures, performance audit processes, the development of asset management plans and Scottish Transport Appraisal Guidance (STAG). The Executive has an ambitious rail infrastructure programme to be delivered by the end of the decade but its ability to complete that programme in partnership with other industry bodies could be affected by escalating costs in the rail industry. The Department for Transport and the Scottish Executive will have to work with the industry to drive costs down.

1.24 The pace of technological change under way is rapid. By 2025 travel, vehicles and fuels may be very different and we will need the confidence and vision to embrace the best of the new technology. Transport should make the best use of technologies like GPS and tracking, smartcards, CCTV and video, mobile telephony, intelligent traffic systems, new road vehicles and trains, low-carbon vehicles, and alternative fuels. Innovation will be an intrinsic part of making transport safer, more easily accessible and user-friendly for all, particularly disabled people who may find it difficult to use public transport, buy tickets or obtain information. Real-time information will become more widespread at the point of service, through the internet and by telephone. Technology should also enable better integration of travel information, journey planning and online ticket purchase, as well as making it easier to buy by a multi-modal, through-ticket.

1.25 Scottish transport has a complex organisational landscape. Local government re-organisation, deregulation and privatisation of the bus industry, privatisation of the rail industry and devolution have all played a part in the creation of our current complex arrangements. Government has a duty to the tax-payer to make it easier for them to understand the system, who funds it and which elected representatives are accountable to them. Most important of all, putting in place the right governance arrangements will improve strategic planning and the focus on delivery, and secure Best Value in transport expenditure.

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