Parliamentary Questions
Travel and Transport
March 2010
Jackie Baillie (Dumbarton) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what progress it is making with local authorities in the implementation of the Disabled Persons’ Parking Places (Scotland) Act 2009.
Stewart Stevenson: Implementing the provisions of the Disabled Persons’ Parking Places (Scotland) Act 2009 is for local authorities to take forward. In order to assist them in doing so, the Scottish Government has set up an Implementation Working Group consisting of representation from local authorities, ACPOS and disability stakeholders. As local authorities are required to report to the Scottish Government on a yearly basis, recording all activity carried out in relation to the provisions of the act, future progress will be clearly monitored. The first reports are expected towards the end of 2011.
Charlie Gordon (Glasgow Cathcart) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many registered holders of entitlement cards under the free bus travel scheme there were in (a) 2007-08 and (b) 2008-09.
Stewart Stevenson: The Scotland-Wide Free Bus Travel for Older and Disabled People Scheme is delivered through the National Entitlement Card, a multi-application smartcard developed by Scotland’s local authorities with the support of the Scottish Government.
Information available to Transport Scotland indicates that, at 31 March 2008, 1,162,000 National Entitlement Cards had been issued under the Scotland-Wide Free Bus Travel for Older and Disabled People Scheme. This figure rose to 1,260,000 by 31 March 2009.
Joe FitzPatrick (Dundee West) (SNP):
To ask the Scottish Executive what progress it is making to increase the accessibility of towns, cities and villages for people with limited mobility and whether it will consider plans to create an exemplar journey as a template for accessibility.
Stewart Stevenson: The Scottish Government is increasing accessibility to towns, cities and villages through both the planning system and the provision of accessible transport. Increased accessibility is promoted using the "Shared Space" approach to road design, and in particular, Home Zones featuring street surfaces which are not physically divided by kerbs.
While the Scottish Government does not have any immediate plans to create exemplar journeys in towns, cities and villages across Scotland, Traveline Scotland provides up to date details on any public transport journey within Scotland, including comprehensive information on the mobility and access aspects of the journey.
November 2009
Claire Baker (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive which local authorities have fully implemented the Disabled Persons’ Parking Places (Scotland) Act 2009.
Stewart Stevenson: The implementation of the Disabled Persons’ Parking Places (Scotland) Act 2009 is a matter for local authorities, not the Scottish Government.
The provisions of the act state that local authorities have until 30 September 2010 to initiate the statutory process for disabled parking spaces that they wish to make enforceable, and to remove those advisory disabled spaces that are no longer needed. In 2011, local authorities must report to Scottish ministers outlining their completed implementation process and then on an annual basis thereafter.
June 2009
Mary Mulligan (Linlithgow) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how local authorities ensure that there is adequate taxi provision for wheelchair users.
Stewart Stevenson: Local authorities are under a general legal obligation to address the needs of the disabled. They also have specific legal powers and duties to control the number and types of taxis operating in their areas. These specific licensing responsibilities provide the context within which they should be assessing need, monitoring current provision and planning future provision.
Mary Mulligan (Linlithgow) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how it defines adequate taxi provision for wheelchair users.
Stewart Stevenson: The Scottish Government does not provide a central definition of what constitutes adequate taxi provision for wheelchair users. It is for individual licensing authorities to determine what they need in their own areas.
Mary Scanlon (Highlands and Islands) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what measures are in place to identify children with mental health issues at nursery, primary and secondary school.
April 2009
Cathy Jamieson (Carrick, Cumnock and Doon Valley) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how much is charged for a Blue Badge parking permit, broken down by local authority.
Stewart Stevenson: Local authorities can, if they wish to, charge an applicant between £2 and £20 for the issue of a blue badge. Deciding how much to charge is a matter for each local authority. Information relating to how much each local authority charges is not held centrally.
Christine Grahame (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S3W-3432 by Stewart Stevenson on 3 September 2007, how many Scottish national entitlement card holders have qualified for a concessionary travel companion card since August 2007, broken down by local authority area.
Stewart Stevenson: Information available to Transport Scotland indicates that as of 27 February 2009 there were 1,122,846 valid National Entitlement Cards in circulation giving access to Scotland-Wide Free Bus Travel for Older and Disabled People.
The following table shows the number of National Entitlement Card holders who qualify for the companion entitlement as of 27 February 2009, broken down by local authority. The total number currently in circulation is 104,277.
Local Authority |
Category of Disabled Plus Companion |
Eligibility Visually Impaired Plus Companion |
Totals |
Aberdeen City |
2,282 |
583 |
2,865 |
Aberdeenshire |
1,512 |
403 |
1,915 |
Angus |
660 |
137 |
797 |
Argyll and Bute |
1,272 |
202 |
1,474 |
City of Edinburgh |
9,167 |
1,188 |
10,355 |
Clackmannanshire |
547 |
58 |
605 |
Comhairle nan Eilean Siar |
149 |
20 |
169 |
Dumfries and Galloway |
1,207 |
429 |
1,636 |
Dundee City |
2,445 |
405 |
2,850 |
East Ayrshire |
2,472 |
231 |
2,703 |
East Dunbartonshire |
1,121 |
149 |
1,270 |
East Lothian |
1,674 |
226 |
1,900 |
East Renfrewshire |
955 |
110 |
1,065 |
Falkirk |
1,391 |
290 |
1,681 |
Fife |
12,810 |
881 |
13,691 |
Glasgow |
17,618 |
1,475 |
19,093 |
Highland |
1,915 |
562 |
2,477 |
Inverclyde |
2,256 |
209 |
2,465 |
Midlothian |
1,626 |
232 |
1,858 |
Moray |
703 |
180 |
883 |
North Ayrshire |
2,953 |
361 |
3,314 |
North Lanarkshire |
6,665 |
536 |
7,201 |
Orkney Islands |
213 |
19 |
232 |
Perth and Kinross |
953 |
252 |
1,205 |
Renfrewshire |
3,577 |
379 |
3,956 |
Scottish Borders |
861 |
221 |
1,082 |
Shetland Islands |
228 |
24 |
252 |
South Ayrshire |
2,047 |
265 |
2,312 |
South Lanarkshire |
5,794 |
601 |
6,395 |
Stirling |
611 |
133 |
744 |
West Dunbartonshire |
2,292 |
242 |
2,534 |
West Lothian |
3,029 |
269 |
3,298 |
Totals |
93,005 |
11,272 |
104,277 |
March 2009
Robin Harper (Lothians) (Green): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has had discussions with the UK Government about providing access to the UK bus network for pensioners who are entitled to use the national concessionary travel scheme and, if not, whether it will make representations to the UK Government on this matter.
Stewart Stevenson: Discussions between the devolved administrations and the Department for Transport were held in 2006 about the possibility of mutual recognition of bus passes across the UK. There are no plans at present to introduce reciprocal concessionary travel arrangements between Scotland and other parts of the UK.
Des McNulty (Clydebank and Milngavie) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what percentage of the budget for Transport Strategy and Innovation in 2009-10 the Mobility and Access Committee for Scotland will receive.
Stewart Stevenson: In 2009-10, the budget for the Mobility and Access Committee for Scotland (MACS) will be part of the wider budget for Transport Strategy and Innovation. The MACS budget provides running cost support for the committee. The Transport Strategy and Innovation Budget is a Level 3 figure. Current Scottish Government Finance Guidelines are that we do not publish figures below those shown in Level 3.
February 2009
Margaret Curran (Glasgow Baillieston) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what criteria are used by the NHS when issuing taxi contracts.
Nicola Sturgeon: The criteria used, including those covering access for the disabled, are determined by each NHS board individually taking account of the vehicle types operating in their areas and are detailed in the tender specification for each contract.
Margaret Curran (Glasgow Baillieston) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether the NHS is required to ensure that the vehicles used under its taxi contracts are accessible to disabled people.
Nicola Sturgeon: There is no legal requirement under the Disability Discrimination Act 1995 for taxis to be accessible to people with disabilities including wheelchair users. NHS boards can however stipulate their own requirements in their tender specifications.
Margaret Curran (Glasgow Baillieston) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many vehicles covered by the patient transport contract are equipped to transport disabled people for NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde.
Nicola Sturgeon: Under NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde’s current patient transport contracts there are 976 vehicles equipped to transport disabled people in the Glasgow area, with a further 23 vehicles so equipped in the Clyde area.
January 2008
Jackie Baillie (Dumbarton) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will review the information provided to local authorities and other bodies that provide concessionary travel cards to ensure that people with learning disabilities who are entitled to the cards receive them and that they are fully aware of the 15 qualifying criteria under which someone may be eligible.
Stewart Stevenson: Guidance notes which are issued to local authorities are reviewed on a regular basis to provide as much information as possible to staff who deal with the validation of application forms for Scotland-Wide Free Bus Travel for Older and Disabled People.
The guidance notes provide detailed information relating to all eligibility criteria and provide advice to local authority staff to ensure application forms are validated correctly. The guidance notes explain in detail the qualifying criteria for anyone with a learning disability and the NCT002 mental health certificate which is required to be completed, clearly states the qualifying criteria and who is authorised to validate the application.
January 2008
Jackie Baillie (Dumbarton) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to ensure that frontline staff in local authorities and other bodies that operate the concessionary travel scheme are properly trained to ensure that those who are entitled to the scheme under any of the qualifying criteria receive the card.
Stewart Stevenson: Staff within local authorities who have responsibility for concessionary travel have been issued with a copy of The National Bus Travel Concession Scheme for Older and Disabled Persons (Eligible Persons and Eligible Services) (Scotland) Order 2006 which explains the operation of Scotland-Wide Free Bus Travel for Older and Disabled People.
They have also been issued with guidance notes prepared by Transport Scotland which gives further information relating to eligibility criteria and documentary evidence which must be supplied to support an application on grounds of disability. The guidance notes also give information on how to validate the application to ensure the applicant receives the correctly branded National Entitlement Card.
Transport Scotland staff have provided training to local authority staff on aspects of concessionary travel and have offered to provide further training if requested. Transport Scotland relies on local authority staff to ensure information is cascaded to all the appropriate staff within their public offices and third party agents which may be used.
February 2008
Johann Lamont (Glasgow Pollok) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what meetings are planned with organisations representing people with disabilities to discuss the proposal to merge the Mobility Access Committee (MACS) with the Public Transport Users Committee (PTUC).
Stewart Stevenson: The government will support MACS and PTUC through the amalgamation process and officials have met with MACS on several occasions recently. We have also started a dialogue with key MACS stakeholders. This amalgamation will help deliver our vision to reshape the public sector by improving its efficiency, effectiveness and outcome focus for the businesses and people of Scotland.
September 2007
Des McNulty (Clydebank and Milngavie) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what impact the concessionary travel scheme has had on bus and ferry patronage levels in each of the last three years.
Stewart Stevenson: Scotland-wide free bus travel for older and disabled people commenced in April 2006. The journey numbers for the first year of operation of the scheme were 156.1 million. This is an increase of 5.9% on the journeys made in the previous year (2005-06) under the previous local concessionary travel schemes for bus travel, which totalled 147.35 million. By comparison, the journeys made under the local concessionary fare schemes for bus travel increased in 2005-06 by 1.35% on the 2004-2005 concessionary bus journeys of £145.39 million.
September 2007
Christine Grahame (South of Scotland) (SNP): Regarding the National Entitlement Card and Scotland-Wide Free Bus Travel for Older and Disabled People, to ask the Scottish Executive how many -
(a) applications have been received
(b) travel passes issued for companions of older and disabled travellers requiring assistance to travel under the national concessionary fares scheme since April 2006, broken down into - parliamentary constituency and local authority area.
Stewart Stevenson: Information supplied to Transport Scotland indicates that since the introduction of the National Entitlement Card and Scotland-Wide Free Bus Travel for Older and Disabled People, 1,064,059 applications have been received and processed to date.
The following table shows the total number of National Entitlement Card holders who qualify for Scotland-Wide Free Bus Travel for Older and Disabled People and those who qualify for the companion entitlement as of 21 August 2007.
Figures can only be broken down by local authority as the facility is unavailable to report by parliamentary constituency.
Local Authority Aberdeen City |
Total No of |
Disabled & |
VI & |
Aberdeenshire |
39,995 |
1,244 |
358 |
Angus |
23,028 |
379 |
97 |
Argyll and Bute |
20,469 |
1142 |
169 |
City of Edinburgh |
88,502 |
8,514 |
1,098 |
Clackmannanshire |
9,454 |
316 |
41 |
Comhairle nan Eilean Siar |
6,046 |
75 |
20 |
Dumfries and Galloway |
30,097 |
836 |
396 |
Dundee City |
31,816 |
950 |
214 |
East Ayrshire |
25,062 |
2,193 |
195 |
East Dunbartonshire |
21,631 |
973 |
108 |
East Lothian |
20,194 |
1,669 |
232 |
East Renfrewshire |
17,172 |
853 |
86 |
Falkirk |
29,101 |
715 |
241 |
Fife |
79,022 |
12,463 |
947 |
Glasgow |
110,475 |
16,191 |
1,250 |
Highland |
41,508 |
1,337 |
473 |
Inverclyde |
18,306 |
2,015 |
184 |
Midlothian |
16,894 |
1,550 |
240 |
Moray |
17,257 |
592 |
206 |
North Ayrshire |
30,925 |
2,618 |
301 |
North Lanarkshire |
58,699 |
6,207 |
438 |
Orkney Islands |
4,304 |
95 |
13 |
Perth and Kinross |
27,940 |
567 |
219 |
Renfrewshire |
36,089 |
3261 |
316 |
Scottish Borders |
23,662 |
652 |
212 |
Shetland Islands |
4,245 |
128 |
11 |
South Ayrshire |
26,924 |
1,795 |
221 |
South Lanarkshire |
59,652 |
5,238 |
513 |
Stirling |
15,867 |
386 |
77 |
West Dunbartonshire |
18,363 |
2,078 |
229 |
West Lothian |
27,956 |
3,060 |
352 |
Total |
1,024,307 |
81,627 |
10,205 |
October 2007
Cathy Jamieson (Carrick, Cumnock and Doon Valley) (Lab):
To ask the Scottish Executive when it intends to introduce technology that will more accurately measure usage of the national concessionary fares scheme.
Stewart Stevenson: There are currently two successful pilot schemes in operation which utilise the new ticketing machine technology. This technology is now in the process of being rolled out across Scotland.
October 2007
Jackie Baillie (Dumbarton) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many people entitled to national entitlement cards for free bus travel under transitional arrangements have been refused renewal as these schemes come to an end, broken down by local authority.
Jackie Baillie (Dumbarton) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many national entitlement cards for free bus travel have been renewed following submission of form NCT002, broken down by local authority.