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Transport across Scotland in 2005 and 2006
07/12/2007
Differences in the transport patterns in different parts of Scotland are shown in a statistical bulletin called Transport across Scotland in 2005 and 2006: some Scottish Household Survey results for parts of Scotland which was released today by Scotland's Chief Statistician. Among the main findings are that, in the two-year period 2005 and 2006:
The car was the main mode of travel to work:
- 67 per cent of commuters in Scotland travelled to work by car or van, rising to 77-80 per cent for Aberdeenshire, Shetland, South Lanarkshire and West Lothian
- 13% walked to work - the figure was highest in Argyll & Bute, Dumfries & Galloway, Dundee and Scottish Borders (20-25 per cent)
- 12 per cent commuted by bus - highest in Edinburgh (27 per cent) and Glasgow and Midlothian (both 20 per cent)
24 per cent of households in Scotland had two or more cars - the figure ranged from:
- 10 per cent in Glasgow and 14 per cent in Dundee to
- 39 per cent in Aberdeenshire and 43 per cent in East Renfrewshire
66 per cent of people in Scotland aged 17 and over had a full driving licence - the figure ranged from:
- 47 per cent in Glasgow and 54 per cent in Dundee to
- 79 per cent in East Renfrewshire, Perth & Kinross and Shetland and 83 per cent in Aberdeenshire
12 per cent of adults in Scotland used their local bus service "every day, or almost every day":
- 25 per cent in Edinburgh and 19 per cent in Glasgow but
- only 3 per cent in "remote" rural areas
82 per cent of people in Scotland aged 60+ held a concessionary travel pass, ranging from:
- 63-66 per cent for Dumfries & Galloway, Orkney and Stirling to
- 90-91 per cent for Glasgow, Inverclyde, North Ayrshire and Renfrewshire
About 13 per cent of people in Scotland aged 60+ had a pass and used it every day or almost every day, rising to 20-27 per cent in Edinburgh, Glasgow, Renfrewshire and West Dunbartonshire.
The overall figures for Scotland as a whole were published earlier in the year (e.g. in Household Transport in October). Transport across Scotland is the only publication which provides the SHS's main Transport-related results for local authority and Regional Transport Partnership (RTP) areas.
The sections below describe some of the main points from the publication. Unless otherwise stated, figures are for Scotland as a whole. The figures for some Council areas could be subject to sampling errors of a few percentage points, because they are based on samples of only a few hundred.
Cars, driving licences and driving in congested traffic
68 per cent of households had one or more cars available for private use - so 32 per cent have no car. Among the Council areas, the percentage of households without a car was:
- highest in Glasgow (54 per cent) and Dundee (47 per cent) and
- lowest in Aberdeenshire (14 per cent) and East Dunbartonshire, East Renfrewshire, Perth & Kinross, Moray and Shetland (all 18-20 per cent)
24 per cent of households had two or more cars, rising to around 40 per cent in "accessible" rural areas. Among the Councils, the 2+ car percentage was:
- highest in Aberdeenshire (39 per cent) and East Renfrewshire (43 per cent) and
- lowest in Dundee (14 per cent) and Glasgow (10 per cent)
66 per cent of people aged 17 or over had a full driving licence. The figure ranged from:
- 47 per cent in Glasgow and 54 per cent in Dundee to
- 83 per cent in Aberdeenshire and 79 per cent in East Renfrewshire, Perth & Kinross and Shetland
17 per cent of people aged 17+ drove in congested traffic at least 3 times per week. The figure was:
- only 5 per cent for those living in "remote" rural areas
- highest (24-30 per cent) for those living in Aberdeen City, East Dunbartonshire, East Renfrewshire, Midlothian, and South Lanarkshire
Travel to work
67 per cent of commuters usually travelled to work by car or van, ranging from:
- 48 per cent for commuters who lived in Edinburgh and 53 per cent in Glasgow to
- 77-80 per cent in Aberdeenshire, Shetland, South Lanarkshire and West Lothian
43 per cent of commuters who travelled by car or van said that they could use public transport. The percentage was highest for those living in Dundee, East Dunbartonshire, Edinburgh, Glasgow and West Dunbartonshire (all 55-59 per cent).
However, 88 per cent of car/van commuters living in Orkney, and 77-78 per cent in Dumfries & Galloway and Shetland, said that they could not use public transport.
13 per cent of commuters walked to work, rising to 26 per cent of those who lived in "remote" small towns. Argyll & Bute, Dumfries & Galloway, Dundee and Scottish Borders had the highest percentages (20-25 per cent).
The bus was the usual means of travel to work for 12 per cent of commuters - the highest percentages were for those living in Edinburgh (27 per cent) and Glasgow and Midlothian (both 20 per cent).
4 per cent travelled to work by rail, including 9 per cent of commuters living in East Dunbartonshire, East Renfrewshire and Inverclyde.
11 per cent of employed adults worked at or from home. The percentage was highest in "remote" rural areas (26 per cent), and in Orkney (26 per cent) and Highland (20 per cent).
Bus services
12 per cent of adults had used their local bus service "every day, or almost every day":
- 25 per cent in Edinburgh and 19 per cent in Glasgow, but
- only 3 per cent in "remote" rural areas
A further 12 per cent said that they used their local bus service 2-3 times per week:17-19 per cent in each of Aberdeen, Dundee, Edinburgh and Glasgow.
Overall, 8 per cent of adults felt, or would feel, "not safe at all" from crime when travelling by bus in the evening. This figure was:
- highest in Dundee (22 per cent) and Angus and West Dunbartonshire (18-19 per cent) and
- only 2-3 per cent in "remote" small towns and "remote" rural areas
About 4 per cent of householders said that they had no bus service or were at least 14 minutes walk away from the nearest bus stop (or place where one could get on a bus). Orkney (34 per cent), Shetland (18 per cent), Aberdeenshire (17 per cent) and Highland (15 per cent) had the highest percentages.
Concessionary travel, convenience of public transport, walking, cycling and travel to school
82 per cent of people aged 60+ held a concessionary travel pass, ranging from
- 67 per cent in "remote" rural areas to
- 85-87 per cent in urban areas
and from
- 63-66 per cent for Dumfries & Galloway, Orkney and Stirling to
- 90-91 per cent for Glasgow, Inverclyde, North Ayrshire and Renfrewshire
4 per cent of people aged 60+ had a pass and used it "every day". This figure was highest in Edinburgh and Glasgow (9-10 per cent).
About 13 per cent had a pass and used it either "every day" or "almost every day" - this figure was highest in Edinburgh, Glasgow, Renfrewshire and West Dunbartonshire (20-27 per cent).
28 per cent of people aged 60+ had a pass but did not use it. This figure was lowest (21 per cent) in large urban areas, and highest (36-38 per cent) in "remote" small towns and "remote" rural areas.
Public transport was described as "very convenient" by:
- 61 per cent of adults in large urban areas, but by
- only 24 per cent in "remote" rural areas: there, 20 per cent said that it was "very inconvenient", and a further 14 per cent felt that it was "fairly inconvenient"
- highest in Aberdeen (76 per cent), Edinburgh, Glasgow and Renfrewshire (all 62-63 per cent)
The "very inconvenient" percentage was highest in Orkney (22 per cent), Aberdeenshire, Highland, Scottish Borders and Shetland (all 12-16 per cent).
46 per cent of adults had walked for pleasure or to keep fit in the previous seven days. The figure ranged from:
- 32 per cent in North Lanarkshire to
- 69 per cent in Moray
4 per cent of adults had cycled for pleasure or to keep fit in the previous seven days: Highland (10 per cent) had the highest figure.
Walking was the usual method of travel to school for 52 per cent of pupils, 23 per cent went by bus and 21 per cent by car or van.
About three-fifths of pupils in towns and cities walked to school, compared with under 30 per cent in rural areas.
The percentage travelling by bus was 13-21 per cent in towns and cities, and 46-55 per cent in rural areas.
There was less variation in the use of the car, the different types of areas' figures being between 16 per cent and 22 per cent.
Printed copies of Transport across Scotland in 2005 and 2006 cost £2 and may be purchased from Scottish Government Publication Sales, Blackwell's Bookshop, 53 South Bridge, Edinburgh EH1 1YS (telephone: 0131 622 8283 or 0131 622 8258).
The Scottish Household Survey (SHS) started in February 1999. It involves interviews with about 15,500 households across Scotland each year. While the aim is to obtain a representative cross section, like any such survey the results may vary from year to year depending upon the composition of the sample. Some topics have been included in the SHS since it started; others were added more recently.
The overall figures for Scotland as a whole were published earlier in the year (e.g. in Household Transport in October). Transport across Scotland is the only publication which provides the SHS's main Transport-related results for local authority and Regional Transport Partnership (RTP) areas.
Transport across Scotland is one of a series of Transport Statistics publications, most of which focus on particular aspects of transport and cover them in depth. The individual publications that comprise the series are described in the section on "Transport Statistics publications" towards the end of the bulletin. A comprehensive statistical picture of transport activity is given by the compendium Scottish Transport Statistics volume, the Main Transport Trends bulletin and the Key Transport Statistics card. These provide figures on a wide range of topics, including: vehicles licensed, traffic volumes and road accidents; the numbers of passengers on bus, rail, air and ferry services; travel to work, travel to school, household car availability and other key findings from the SHS and the National Travel Survey; and road, rail and waterborne freight. Detailed analyses of the SHS's main Transport-related results are available from SHS Travel Diary results (figures for Scotland as a whole and for individual Council and RTP areas), Transport across Scotland (the main non-Travel Diary results for individual Council and RTP areas) and Household Transport (detailed analysis of the main non-Travel Diary results for Scotland as a whole).