Transport Minister Stewart Stevenson is making up to £15m available over the next three years to create “sustainable travel demonstration communities” across the country.
The plans, in partnership with COSLA, call for expressions of
interest on a matched funding basis from Scotland's local authorities
to help create the communities.
Stevenson says that these communities would be a role model for others to follow, showcasing the very best methods available to encourage residents to use more environmentally-friendly forms of transport.
Similar schemes elsewhere have already led to impressive results. In Darlington, there has been a 14 per cent increase in public transport trips, a 29 per cent increase in walking, a 79 per cent increase in cycling and car journeys down by 11 per cent.
The results have been achieved through simple measures such as improving cycle and walking routes, better public transport links, more pedestrian-only areas, travel advisors visiting homes providing tailored travel plans, car sharing schemes and discounts on bus and train tickets.
Today's announcement coincides with a visit by the UK Climate Change Committee to Scotland.
Launching the initiative, Stevenson said: “Congested roads, increasing car use, more cars on our roads, and rising emissions - these are the worrying trends facing Scotland in 2008.
“It is clear that it is time for us all to take action. We must encourage a change in the mode of transport we use.
“We need to look at new ways of persuading people out of the car and onto more sustainable forms of travel such as trains, buses, walking and cycling.
“Sustainable travel communities give us a fantastic opportunity to do just that, and could drastically change our travel habits. This approach has delivered impressive results in other countries, transforming the travel behaviour of thousands of residents.
“I want to see Scotland do even better. This is an opportunity for forward thinking towns to deliver lifelong changes in how its citizens go about their daily business.
“The effects of this policy could be felt across all walks of life delivering a more vibrant Scottish economy, a less congested roads network, a cleaner environment, and a much healthier nation.
“We have made substantial funding available for this project, and I hope local authorities across Scotland take up the challenge and apply to take part. It could deliver real improvements in traffic levels, emissions, and the health of residents across the country."
Councillor Alison Hay, COSLA's Regeneration and Sustainable Development spokesperson, added:
“I am excited about this project. Councils have long been advocating sustainable travel through their work on the provision of cycling and access routes as well as the promotion of public transport and the use of greener fuels. We all want to live in more sustainable, healthier communities but getting from where we are now to there is going to involve some fundamental lifestyle shifts.
“This project provides a forum for looking at how we can make these shifts in a big way. This has to be a concerted effort, and if we can demonstrate that these approaches will work in Scotland as they have in Darlington we can start the journey of bringing others on board to provide leadership at the highest level in making the big changes necessary to achieve sustainable places in communities all across Scotland.”
TRANSform Scotland, the national sustainable transport alliance, today welcomed the announcement.
Colin Howden, Director of TRANSform Scotland said: “This will provide an excellent opportunity to showcase how small-scale local transport projects can get people to switch to sustainable transport.
“The English scheme has proved very successful. Given the additional funding available in the Scottish scheme, there is no reason why this shouldn't deliver even better results.
“If Scotland is to achieve its ambitious climate change emission targets then the transport sector is going to have to play a large part. The sustainable travel towns will provide examples of how to bring about reductions in carbon emissions.
“We hope that many local authorities around Scotland will bring forward bids. It's important that we see a range of towns in both urban and rural areas take forward sustainable travel towns.”
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