Scottish Government

This item was published during the term of a previous administration that ended in April 2007

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Trends in bus and coach travel

15/03/2005

There were 449 million passenger journeys on local bus services in Scotland in 2003-04, one per cent more than in the previous year. Per head of population, patronage is higher in Scotland than for Great Britain as a whole.

In 2003, 41 per cent of adults had used a local bus service within the previous month. 71 per cent of them agreed that the buses ran on time, and 70 per cent felt that bus fares were good value.

These statistics are contained in the Statistical Bulletin Bus and Coach Statistics 2003-04, published today by the Scottish Executive. This uses the results of the Department for Transport (DfT) survey of Public Service Vehicle operators to describe the trends in bus and coach services in Scotland, and to provide some comparable statistics for Great Britain. It also provides some results from the Scottish Household Survey.

Key findings from the DfT survey show:

• The number of passenger journeys on local bus services in Scotland was 449 million in 2003-04, one per cent more than in the previous year.
• This was the seventh increase since the current records began in 1975, and the first time since then that there have been increases in five consecutive years. However, there were 15 per cent fewer passengers in 2003-04 than ten years earlier.
• The 2003-04 total represents 89 journeys per head of population, which is 13 per cent higher than the corresponding figure for Great Britain as a whole.
• The total distance (in vehicle-kilometres) travelled by local bus services in Scotland per head of population was 73 per cent higher than in Great Britain.
• In real terms, fares on local bus services in Scotland rose by 16 per cent between 1993-94 and 2003-04, one per cent less than for Great Britain. Over the same period, there was a fall of four per cent in real terms in motoring costs for Great Britain.
• Passenger receipts from all bus and coach services (local and non-local) in Scotland totalled £474 million in 2003-04. In real terms, they were £35 million less than in the previous year, and £2 million more than ten years earlier.
• In Scotland, over the past ten years, the number of single decker buses and coaches has increased by 12 per cent, the number of double deckers has reduced by 24 per cent, and staff numbers were the same in 2003-04 as in 1993-94. The operating costs per vehicle-kilometre in 2003-04 were 19 per cent lower in real terms than ten years earlier.
• Since 1975 Scotland has seen a 50 per cent reduction in the number of local bus passenger journeys but a 15 per cent increase in the distance (vehicle-kilometres) travelled by local bus services.

The latest results from the Scottish Household Survey, which relate to the calendar year 2003, include:

• About seven-eighths of households were within six minutes walk of a bus stop. However, about 28 per cent in "remote" rural areas, and about 15 per cent in "accessible" rural areas, had no bus service or were at least 14 minutes walk away from one.
• 41 per cent of adults stated that they had used a local bus service within the previous month.
• 71 per cent of adults who had used a local bus service within the previous month agreed with the statement that the buses run on time. 74 per cent agreed that the buses ran when they were needed, 76 per cent found them comfortable, 86 per cent felt safe and secure on the bus, 91 per cent found the range and price of tickets easy to understand, and 70 per cent of bus users felt that bus fares were good value.
• 11 per cent of commuters said that they usually travelled to work by bus.
• 45 per cent of car/van commuters said that they could use public transport to travel to work.
• The main reasons given by car and van commuters who could use public transport to travel to work for not doing so included "takes too long", "inconvenient", "no direct route" and "use my own car".
• The main reasons given by adults for not using buses more often included "use my own car", "inconvenient", "no need", "takes too long" and "lack of service".
• 14 per cent of adults said that they would feel "very safe", and 39 per cent "fairly safe", when travelling by bus in the evening. However, eight per cent would feel "not safe at all" and 13 per cent "not particularly safe".
• About 9-12 per cent of journeys made by adults each day were by bus, except on Sundays when it was only five per cent. The percentage was higher for women (11 per cent) than it was for men (eight per cent); and was higher for those aged 16-19 and 70+ (19-21 per cent) than for 30-59 year olds (six-seven per cent). The self-employed, small employers and sole traders, adults living in households with an annual net income of over £40,000, and adults living in "remote" rural areas, all made at most three per cent of their journeys by bus.

This is a National Statistics publication. It has been produced to high professional standards set out in the National Statistics Code of Practice and Release Practice Protocol.

These statistics undergo regular quality assurance reviews to ensure that they meet customer needs. They are produced free from any political interference.

The Scottish Household Survey is funded by the Scottish Executive, and carried out on its behalf by contractors. The SHS's principal purpose is to collect information in its main areas of transport, social inclusion and (until 2002) local government, but other topics are covered, including household composition, housing and amenities, overcrowding and sharing in housing, employment and unemployment, income, assets and savings, credit and debt, and health, disabilities and care.