Young Persons’ (Under 22s) Free Bus Travel Scheme: FOI release

Information requested

Your request asked that we; please send the uptake stats for the Young Persons’ (Under 22s) Free Bus Travel Scheme, broken down by local authority. Please also send the estimated percentage of those eligible who have claimed a free bus travel card. 

 

Response

As at the end of the day 31 May 2023, there have been 68,164,793 journeys made under the Young Persons’ (under 22s) Free Bus Travel Scheme. At the same date, there were 635,220 cardholders, representing 68.3% of the estimated eligible population in Scotland. 

The table below provides a breakdown of journeys, cardholders and uptake as at the end of the day 31 May 2023. 

Location / Age Range	Journeys	Cardholders	Uptake against estimated eligible  population
National	68,164,793	635,220	68.3%
Aberdeen City	3,887,211	26,984	75.4%
Aberdeenshire	1,940,212	31,536	65.7%
Angus Council	931,632	12,716	65.9%
Argyll & Bute	514,348	7,397	55.7%
City of Edinburgh	15,059,065	75,065	93.3%
Clackmannanshire	283,846	4,157	46.0%
Comhairle nan Eilean Siar	92,043	2,015	48.0%
Dumfries and Galloway	919,712	11,987	51.0%
Dundee City	3,427,533	20,873	82.1%
East Ayrshire	1,855,447	16,022	76.7%
East Dunbartonshire	882,991	11,397	57.9%
East Lothian	2,111,321	14,347	73.6%
East Renfrewshire	825,067	12,747	63.2%
Falkirk	864,188	12,539	44.8%
Fife	5,255,332	52,513	79.1%
Glasgow City	8,384,480	67,615	67.0%
Highland	1,251,432	18,607	47.3%
Inverclyde	1,051,266	11,318	89.7%
Midlothian	1,910,754	11,715	67.3%
Moray	580,156	9,237	56.1%
North Ayrshire	1,811,412	19,027	83.5%
North Lanarkshire	2,512,485	42,160	67.1%
Orkney Islands	88,461	1,803	50.8%
Perth & Kinross	1,455,004	15,938	63.8%
Renfrewshire	2,256,686	21,346	70.9%
Scottish Borders	910,476	11,365	59.6%
Shetland Islands	191,526	2,825	68.5%
South Ayrshire	869,529	10,441	58.4%
South Lanarkshire	2,295,395	38,326	69.4%
Stirling	783,250	9,203	55.7%
West Dunbartonshire	1,164,454	12,082	78.4%
West Lothian	1,798,079	19,917	56.1%
5-11	27,866,432 (40.9%)	201,570	52.7%
12-15		176,968	78.7%
16-21	40,298,361 (59.1%)	256,682	80.0%

Cardholder data is supplied by the National Entitlement Card Programme Office (NECPO). NECPO supports the 32 local authorities by assisting with the integration of various national and local public services on the National Entitlement Card (NEC) and are the joint controller with local authorities of this data. The figure includes travel products collected from the Transport Scot Pass Collect mobile app. 

The Improvement Service (IS) is the accountable body for the National Entitlement Card (NEC) scheme and cards are delivered by the National Entitlement Card Programme Office (NECPO) on behalf of local authorities. 

The data refers to the number of young people with a valid card but does not include products which either start in the future or have expired. Figures provided by NECPO, as at close of business 31 May 2023. 

Uptake refers to the number of cardholders versus the estimated eligible population of young people in each respective area. 

Data reporting for the Young Persons’ Free Bus Travel Scheme is undertaken on a monthly basis, following the end of each calendar month. 

Journeys are based on the local authority which issued the card. Some journeys will have been undertaken out with the local authority area. 

About FOI

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