The North East Bus Alliance, established in 2018, consists of Aberdeen City Council, Aberdeenshire Council, Nestrans, First Aberdeen, Stagecoach Bluebird, and Bains Coaches. The Alliance aims to enhance bus services in the region and attract more passengers through a regional Bus Action Plan. Currently, the Alliance collaborates with Transport Scotland’s Bus Partnership Fund (BPF) team to implement new bus priority measures.

In Autumn 2023, the first BPF infrastructure project was completed in Aberdeen. This project included improvements on South College Street and a new city centre active travel and public transport priority loop, co-funded by Nestrans. These enhancements facilitate safer walking, wheeling, and cycling and ensure a more efficient passage of buses through the area, improving accessibility to the bus station. The project addresses congestion issues around the bus station, where buses previously faced significant delays.

The loop includes bus gate enforcement cameras to reduce non-essential traffic, guiding through traffic to bypass routes while maintaining access for residents and businesses. The new priority measures have improved punctuality (over 95%) and faster bus journeys in the city centre, with journey times reduced by up to 25%, equating to a 5-minute saving on a 20-minute trip, based on operator data.

As a result, approximately 600,000 people per month now experience more reliable bus services. A recent passenger survey found 81% satisfaction with bus services and 86% satisfaction with journey times. These improvements have contributed to a nearly 10% increase in bus usage since the new measures were implemented. This initiative exemplifies successful partnership, delivering benefits across environmental, economic, and inclusion outcomes.

NHS Grampian’s Health & Transport Action Plan (HTAP) aims to address interconnected issues across various agencies to mitigate the negative impacts of transport choices on public health and improve access to health and social care. The governance structure overseeing HTAP includes various partners and stakeholders from health, social care, public, commercial, and third-sector organisations, making this partnership unique in Scotland.

Key achievements of HTAP include a comprehensive review of travel planning across public bodies, collaborations with visiting academics, joint training events, and co-funding the Travel to Health and Social Care Information Centre (THInC), which has won a COSLA award. Additionally, HTAP has initiated the Grampian Volunteer Transport Awards, recognising contributions in this field.

Through formal and informal discussions, HTAP has facilitated better understanding and cooperation between the health, social care, and transport sectors. The partnership’s value was particularly evident during the pandemic, showcasing the importance of collaborative efforts.

HTAP’s initiatives are now influencing the national approach to transport and health, demonstrating its impact and the effectiveness of its collaborative model.

The successful completion of the £200m Trams to Newhaven project exemplifies effective partnership, culminating in delivering a new 4.6-kilometre tram route with eight stops.

Transitioning from an agreed plan to a finished tramway required extensive collaboration. Colin Kerr, Head of Safety and Projects, spearheaded the partnership between Edinburgh Trams and the Trams to Newhaven (TtN) team. His proficiency in swiftly resolving issues was crucial in minimising potential delays and associated costs.

Teams worked closely with contractors throughout the project, ensuring the new line was delivered within budget and on schedule. Potential hazards were identified and included in a risk register during the design phase to prioritise safety. Routine safety and operational checks were conducted at each project phase, including a thorough and complex testing and commissioning phase.

This meticulous approach ensured that the Trams to Newhaven project was completed on time and within budget, showcasing the effectiveness of the collaborative effort.

HITRANS’s cycle hire scheme, HI-BIKE, has demonstrated significant success since its launch in 2021. Initially, the scheme featured three docking stations, four virtual docks, and 30 bikes in Inverness. By 2022, this expanded to 6 docks and 50 bikes. However, in spring 2023, the scheme faced potential closure due to the bankruptcy of its operator, Canadian bikeshare company Bewegen. HITRANS intervened, taking over operations to preserve the scheme.

In the initial months, HITRANS staff rapidly acquired the skills necessary to operate an eBike share scheme, encompassing back-office IT, bike redistribution, maintenance, customer service, and bike share technology. The scheme was only temporarily halted for a week to update SIM card accounts. HITRANS swiftly contracted an external mechanic to maintain the bikes, retaining some employees from the previous operator.

Plans include expanding the scheme within Inverness and extending it to Elgin. HI-BIKE is now the UK’s only publicly owned and operated eBike share scheme. As of January 2024, the scheme boasts nearly 1,000 regular users with 2,700 recurring memberships and 12,000 single-use users. This totals almost 13,000 individual users since its inception, covering 220,000 km and saving over 40,000 kilograms of CO2 compared to car travel.

Membership has shown steady growth, with a notable increase in monthly pass purchases from 210 between May and September 2022 to 419 in the same period in 2023. Users benefit from affordable rates, paying as little as £1.55 per week for an annual pass with unlimited rides and 24-hour access. Additionally, an equal opportunities pass is available free of charge for those in need.

Light Rail UK is a consortium comprising Light Rail consultants, transport engineers, politicians, academics, environmentalists, members of the public, and other pro bono and commercial specialists in low-cost, sustainable public transport. Its primary focus is on tramways and advocating for their environmental, social, and economic benefits. The association actively participates in industry events to share best practices and operates the All Party Parliamentary Light Rail Group to educate and influence decision-makers towards sustainable transport investments. In 2024, Light Rail UK submitted multiple entries for awards, including proposals for a hydrogen-powered Very Light Rail East-West Line 1 and a West-East Line 2. Their extensive expertise, technical proficiency, and collaborative approach contribute significantly to the industry.

From Spring 2022 to Autumn 2023, Network Rail and Contractors BAM Nuttall, SPL Powerlines, Siemens, and RSA collaborated on the £63.3m Glasgow-Barrhead Electrification project. The preferred option was a six-week closure during the school summer holidays.

The project teams worked closely together, focusing on delivering several civil elements, including significant modifications to bridges along the route. Additionally, a bridge and a footbridge in a suburban neighbourhood near a conservation area were removed and reinstated.

Stakeholders were kept informed through various communication channels such as letters, social media updates, and regular consultations coordinated by Network Rail’s Community Liaison Team, which also involved the contractors. Regular meetings with the local authority facilitated the agreement on traffic management, requiring road closures and temporary diversions to facilitate the demolition of three additional bridges.

The line closure allowed the team to deliver the project efficiently and with minimal disruption in preparation for the energisation and commissioning of the route in Autumn 2023. The first electric train ran on the route in November 2023.

Despite the inherent risks associated with a multi-disciplinary, six-week railway engineering programme, the project team overcame challenges by operating from a single compound where daily meetings were held. All parties completed 100% of the planned works safely, on time, and under budget.

This project marks a significant milestone in Scotland as the first major electrification project to be delivered with zero defects at entry into service, reflecting the professionalism of the team involved.

The redevelopment of Motherwell Rail Station and the Town Centre Transport Interchange marked a significant multi-partnered, multi-funded transport infrastructure investment in North Lanarkshire. ScotRail and North Lanarkshire Council collaborated on the project, funded by Transport Scotland, North Lanarkshire Council through the Glasgow City Region (GCR) City Deal, and SPT.

The last major refurbishment of the station dated back to the early 1970s. In 2018, the multi-partnered Project Client Steering Group (PCSG) was established to coordinate the redevelopment of the station alongside broader transport integration improvements on Muir Street. This group was crucial in successfully managing a challenging major redevelopment project, which involved overlapping construction phases and required close risk management and mitigations.

The collaborative working group provided an effective forum for ratifying decisions and resolving issues. A project communications group ensured that bus and rail users, local businesses, and key stakeholders were kept informed throughout the delivery process. Work was completed while maintaining access to rail and bus services throughout.

The scheme delivered several enhancements, including an enhanced forecourt and building with a glazed roof, a brighter and larger concourse with a more open frontage, improved ticket retailing facilities, a better station retail environment, refurbished customer facilities, and new automatic ticket gates generating revenue and new information screens.

Final proposals for Muir Street were shaped by public engagement and feedback during consultation before work commenced. The project achieved the following:

A high-quality bus, train, and bike transport interchange on Muir Street.
Expansion and enhancement of the bus facility, including RTPI.
A new access road with facilities for taxis, drop-off, and blue badge parking.
Improvements to pedestrian and cycling access and cycle parking.

The redeveloped station was officially reopened on June 23 2023 by Fiona Hyslop, MSP Minister for Transport. This complex and wide-ranging master planning project emphasised collaborative and positive internal and external work.

During the post-pandemic period of 2020-2021, ScotRail observed a rise in anti-social behaviour, unsafe behaviours, and vulnerability incidents, coinciding with record-low journey numbers. In response, ScotRail developed its Travel Safety team, marking the first of its kind within the company and introducing a new role and concept. This initiative enables a specialised resource to engage, educate, and reassure passengers and colleagues actively. The team possesses the flexibility to promptly address emerging trends and hot spot areas across the network through positive actions, interventions, and customer engagement.

An admirable aspect of the role is the empathetic approach taken by the team in identifying vulnerable individuals, ensuring they receive assistance, and, where necessary, are directed to relevant support agencies to obtain the help they require rather than merely being moved on. The team engaged in 18,209 passenger interactions/assistance/interventions, conducted 12 suspected suicide interventions, and directed 249 concerns for welfare/vulnerable persons to relevant support agencies or authorities – additionally, 116 incidents required escalation to the British Transport Police (BTP) or Police Scotland.

The team collaborates and aligns objectives with key stakeholders such as BTP, Network Rail, Police Scotland, and local authorities while educating and raising awareness about various support and charitable organisations such as Samaritans, Railway Children, and White Ribbon. Impressively, the team adopts a practical approach to the youth demographic, focusing on building rapport and trust rather than resorting to punitive methods.

It is encouraging to note the establishment of several lasting positive relationships between the team and identified individuals and groups historically associated with unsafe behaviours. The results of this relational approach speak for themselves, with a reduction from 70% to 30% in youth-related events across the network and a 58% reduction in public performance-related incidents on specific lines of route. This initiative is an excellent step forward, especially considering the recent debate on station staff presence.

Stagecoach and St Andrews University have partnered to reduce car journeys to the campus and encourage people’s return after the COVID-19 pandemic. The partnership established a subsidised ticket scheme for all staff and students (excluding those under 22, eligible for free travel), offering a 75% discount on tickets. This discount is funded by a commercial partnership between Stagecoach and the University, with 50% of the ticket value funded by the university and a further 25% commercial discount offered by Stagecoach.

Customers access the discounted tickets via a bespoke corporate version of the Stagecoach Bus App and present their mobile ticket to the driver when boarding the bus. The trial scheme was launched in late 2022 for an initial 6-month period, with the University communications team ensuring all staff and students were aware of this new benefit. Stagecoach East Scotland’s team supported new app users and those with technical queries.

Analysis of the pilot showed that 26% of staff and 6% of students used the scheme. 34% of participants changed their commute from car to bus, saving an average of 206kg CO2e per day, equivalent to a 19.1% carbon reduction. Fare-paying passengers increased by 6%. Consequently, an agreement was reached to continue the partnership for a further six months with a revision to each partner’s reimbursement rate but maintaining the customer’s 75% discount level. This partnership was extended once again in November 2023.

As of February 1, 2024, the scheme is live and still popular with St Andrews University staff and students. Over 21,000 tickets were purchased in 2023, saving them over £793,000 in bus travel costs over the year.