The Bus Infrastructure Fund in Scotland should begin to come to fruition in the current financial year, according to the Programme for Government 2025-26 published by the Scottish Government on 6 May.
It also confirms that a £2 bus fare cap pilot in one regional transport partnership area in Scotland will go ahead, backed by £3 million of public money. However, abolition of peak rail fares from 1 September has drawn strong criticism from the Confederation of Passenger Transport (CPT) Scotland.
The Bus Infrastructure Fund was quietly revealed in late 2024. It succeeded the Bus Partnership Fund and will focus on delivering bus priority and supporting infrastructure measures to tackle congestion.
As noted in the Scottish Budget for FY2025/26, the Bus Infrastructure Fund allocation comes from £164.8 million towards active and sustainable travel.
A ‘pausing’ of the Bus Partnership Fund for FY2024/25 drew strong criticism from industry stakeholders. Budgetary pressures were blamed for that step by Holyrood, but it was only confirmed many months later that the Bus Partnership Fund had in fact been terminated in favour of the Bus Infrastructure Fund.
On peak rail fares in Scotland, a previous pilot of their removal ended during September 2024. A subsequent evaluation of the effectiveness of that trial showed “that there [had] not been a significant shift from car to rail use” and that the approach delivered a “limited impact in terms of meeting the First Minister’s priorities for Scotland.”
Nevertheless, peak rail fares in Scotland will now be removed permanently later this year. CPT Scotland Director Paul White has questioned that decision, noting that the pilot grew rail demand in the country “by potentially as little as 2.4% at a cost of £40 million.”
Mr White says that permanent removal “appears to be a decision based on popularity rather than the best use of limited funding to benefit the environment, help those in lower socioeconomic groups, or meet wider government policy objectives.”
He thus believes that there should be “a rebalancing of focus and funding towards bus” if the Scottish Government is to deliver cleaner air, economic growth and social inclusion, and address the climate emergency.
Download the Programme for Government 2025/26 here.
