National and Regional Strategic Context

National Transport Strategy

The second National Transport Strategy (NTS) was published on 5 February 2020. NTS sets out an ambitious and compelling vision for Scotland’s transport system for the next 20 years: we will have a sustainable, inclusive, safe and accessible transport system, helping deliver a healthier, fairer and more prosperous Scotland for communities, businesses and visitors. There are four priorities to support this vision:

  • reduces inequalities
  • takes climate action
  • helps deliver inclusive economic growth
  • improves our health and wellbeing.

The NTS Delivery Board is the main governance body that oversees the implementation of the Strategy. The Board consists of organisations with a shared responsibility for successful delivery of the Strategy, including Regional Transport Partnerships, who produce Regional Transport Strategies aligned with NTS, along with local authorities.

The actions taken by the Scottish Government to support the delivery of the NTS are set out in Delivery Plans, with the third Delivery Plan published on 8 December 2023. These Plans do not set out what local authorities and other partners are doing to deliver the aims of the strategy, but reviewing the actions set out in the Plans should aid the development of Local Transport Strategies.

Key to understanding and evaluating the progress of the NTS over the short, medium and long term is to routinely monitor and report on progress towards its outcomes. In August 2021, we published our detailed NTS Monitoring and Evaluation Strategy. We will monitor and evaluate a number of indicators that span the four priorities of the strategy. The indicators range from transport emissions to the proportion of short journeys made by active travel to transport related casualties, among many others. Where possible, these indicators are broken down and analysed by demographic and geographic variables to demonstrate how experiences of transport vary across society and to ensure that interventions are measured in terms of their impact on all people in Scotland.

NTS Priority: Reduces inequalities

The ‘Reduces Inequalities’ priority ensures everyone can use transport as an enabler to access opportunities. Transport plays an important part in delivering the fully inclusive society we want. While we tackle inequalities, our actions will simultaneously reduce poverty, in particular child poverty. We define transport poverty as “ the lack of transport options that are available, reliable, affordable, accessible or safe that allow people to meet their daily needs and achieve a reasonable quality of life”. Our transport system will provide fair access to services we need: we have a duty to reduce inequalities and advance equality of opportunity and outcome, including the protected characteristics of age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex and sexual orientation. We will ensure that our disadvantaged communities and individuals have fair access to the transport services they need. The transport system will enable everyone to access a wide range of services and to realise their human rights

The route map to reducing car use recognises the importance of ensuring that measures which disincentivise car use do not disadvantage people who use cars as mobility aids. However it also recognises that some groups of people are less likely than the general population to have access to a car, and maintaining a status quo in which car travel is prioritised over other sustainable travel behaviours is in itself inequitable.

It is therefore critical that local authorities consider accessibility from the very beginning stages of LTS development (via the EQIA process, as set out under the section on impact assessments).

A number of organisations including the Mobility and Access Committee for Scotland, Inclusion Scotland and Disability Equality Scotland provide resources which local authorities can use when they are considering how to ensure that their LTS promotes accessibility and is developed with engagement from disabled people and groups representing disabled people.

NTS Priority: Takes climate action

We continue to face a climate emergency and we need to move to a greener, more sustainable and more active means of travelling. The NTS priority: Takes Climate Action will help deliver our net-zero target, will adapt to the effects of climate change and will promote greener, cleaner choices. Transport is currently the largest contributor to Scottish emissions and this will be tackled through a range of actions including an ambition to phase out the need for new petrol and diesel cars and vans by 2032, changing people’s travel behaviour and managing demand.

In recognition of the need for joint ambition and action at both a national and local level, the Scottish Government and COSLA have co-developed a route map to reducing car use, in order to enable healthier, fairer and more sustainable lives. In addition to meeting our statutory obligations for greenhouse gas emissions, the route map also recognises the benefits that re-thinking the way we travel can have on our individual and community health and wellbeing, as well as the fairness of our society and the inclusiveness of our economy.

Transport Scotland published the Approach to Climate Change Adaptation and Resilience in August 2023 which outlines the key climate risks affecting Scotland’s transport system and sets out our strategic outcomes for road, rail, aviation and maritime transport networks.

NTS Priority: Helps deliver inclusive economic growth

The NTS sets out how the transport system plays a crucial role in the successful performance of Scotland’s economy and ensuring regional cohesion. Transport enables people to access education and employment and ensures firms are able to get their goods and services to markets in Scotland and beyond. It is an important contributory factor in Scotland’s competitiveness, impacting on productivity of our labour force and the efficiency of businesses.

Scotland's National Strategy for Economic Transformation sets out our vision for a wellbeing economy. It contains bold actions – within the powers currently available to us - to deliver economic prosperity and wellbeing for all of Scotland’s people and places, within safe environmental limits. It also refers to Regional Economic Partnerships that are collaborations between local government, the private sector, education and skills providers, our enterprise and skills agencies and the third sector to deliver economic prosperity across Scotland’s regions.

At a national level, Transport Scotland published Vision for Scotland’s public electric vehicle (EV) charging network setting out what an ideal public charging offer for cars and vans would look like across Scotland to allow efficient movement of people and goods. As part of the approach Transport Scotland are supporting Scotland’s local authorities to develop public electric vehicle charging strategies and infrastructure expansion plans.

The LTS should align with and consider how transport can support national, regional, and local economic strategies and plans, such as supporting commuters, tourism, events, retail, and goods delivery.

NTS Priority: Improves our health and wellbeing

The NTS states that our transport system will enable a healthy, active and fit nation. It recognises that transport plays an important part in delivering the fully inclusive society we want, therefore while we tackle inequalities, our actions will simultaneously reduce poverty, in particular child poverty. 

Our transport system also needs to be safe and secure and give users trust and confidence that they will reach their destinations without threat. It should also allow people to make active travel choices to improve their health and physical and mental wellbeing and seek to reduce health inequalities.

Increased levels of walking and physical activity are desirable for health and environmental reasons, as well as being an essential element of a sustainable and integrated transport system. The National Walking Strategy and the National Walking Strategy Action Plan provide more information on the national policy on this. The Scottish Government has committed at least £320 million, or 10% of the total transport budget, to active travel in future budgets post 2024 – 2025. Local Authorities are eligible to a portion of the existing Active Travel Transformation Fund.

Over 2023 and 2024, we are helping local authorities deliver Low Emissions Zones (LEZs) in Scotland’s four largest cities. This is a key initiative to improve urban air quality and to ensure that everyone, but particularly the oldest, youngest and those with pre-existing medical conditions, are protected from the harmful impacts of poor air quality in our city centres. If a local authority would like to introduce a LEZ in their area, they can contact Transport Scotland for guidance.

In the NTS Delivery Plan 2023, Transport Scotland have a commitment for all appropriate roads in built-up areas have a safer 20mph speed limit. Regulations are also in place allowing local authorities to enforce a ban on pavement parking, double parking and parking at dropped kerbs.

Regulations came into force in September 2023 that enable local transport authorities to explore the bus franchising and partnership powers in the Transport (Scotland) Act 2019. From 4 December 2023, local transport authorities can work with operators to improve the quality and efficiency of local services through a Bus Services Improvement Partnership or develop a franchising framework to help them revitalise bus networks according to their own needs.

STPR2

In 2019, Transport Scotland commenced the second Strategic Transport Projects Review, the first review having been published in 2008. This review of the strategic transport network’s performance informs strategic transport investment in Scotland for the next 20 years (2022-2042) by providing evidence-based recommendations on which Scottish Ministers can base future transport investment decisions. STPR2 delivery will have an important role in supporting the delivery of the NPF4 national spatial strategy, National Developments and national policy.

STPR2 considers the transport needs of Scotland’s people and communities, and examines active travel (walking, wheeling, cycling), bus, ferry, rail and trunk roads as well as passenger and freight access to major ports and airports. These needs are reviewed from national and regional perspectives with Recommendations detailed across Scotland to reflect the different geographies, travel patterns and demands and have been informed by NPF4 (see below). The Recommendations deliver on NTS vision, priorities and outcomes and align with NPF4 and the Climate Change Plan update.

Any STPR recommendations covering the local area should help inform the LTS and can be found in their recommendations sorted by region.

National Planning Framework 4 (NPF4)

The National Planning Framework 4 (NPF4) is a long term plan for Scotland that sets out the Scottish Ministers’ policies and proposals for the development and use of land. NPF4 details our long term plan for what Scotland could be in 2045. NPF4 guides spatial development, set out national planning policies, designate national developments and highlight regional spatial priorities. It will be part of the Local Development Plan, and so influence planning decisions across Scotland.

NPF4 sets out national planning policies applicable Scotland wide and should help inform the LTS and any recommended proposals. Policies such as local liveability and infrastructure-first will be fundamental to preparing a LTS.

From a transport perspective, NPF4 aims to encourage, promote and facilitate developments that prioritise walking, wheeling, cycling and public transport for everyday travel and reduce the need to travel unsustainably. NPF4 is clear that Local Development Plans are expected to reflect the sustainable travel hierarchy and sustainable investment hierarchy by making best use of existing infrastructure and services. Local Development Plans are also encouraged to promote a place-based approach to reduce car use.

Regional Transport Partnerships/Strategies

Regional Transport Partnerships bring together local authorities and other key regional stakeholders to take a strategic approach to transport in each region of Scotland. Their Regional Transport Strategies provide a framework for the transport activities of constituent councils, health boards and others but do not necessarily go into detail on those delivery issues that remain out with their direct responsibility. Whilst the RTS acts as a framework, the LTS of the constituent councils will also contribute to the RTS.

When taken together, the national, regional and local strategies will represent a hierarchy of interventions in transport services, infrastructure and travel behaviour and a comprehensive framework for the improvement of transport across the whole of Scotland.

The Place Principle

The Scottish Government and COSLA have agreed to adopt the Place Principle to help overcome organisational and sectoral boundaries, to encourage better collaboration and community involvement, and improve the impact of combined energy, resources and investment.

The principle was developed by partners in the public and private sectors, the third sector and communities, to help them develop a clear vision for their place. 

It promotes a shared understanding of place, and the need to take a more collaborative approach to a place’s services and assets to achieve better outcomes for people and communities. The principle encourages and enables local flexibility to respond to issues and circumstances in different places.

The ScotPHO profiles present a range of indicators to give an overview of health and its wider determinants at a local level. This could be included as a tool/resource in building a profile of the needs of the local area.

Regional Spatial Strategies

The Planning (Scotland) Act 2019 establishes a duty for a planning authority, or authorities acting jointly, to prepare and adopt a Regional Spatial Strategy (RSS). The new duty to produce Regional Spatial Strategies will be enacted with the publication of statutory guidance. Once the duty is enacted it will be for planning authorities, individually or jointly, to finalise and adopt their RSS.

It is noted that transport interventions within these plans should have emerged from evidenced-based transport appraisal, which is required where Scottish Government funding, support or approval is needed for changes to the transport system.