Active travel

Since 2015, Huntly Travel Hub has been helping the community find alternative travel options to private cars. The initiative has lots of strands. Two of the most popular are, firstly, the Co-Wheels car club, which rents out new electric/hybrid vehicles to local residents by the hour, bookable online. Secondly, a fleet of e-bikes, great for people who are recovering from illness or find cycling too much of a challenge. There’s been a fantastic uptake – with people saving money, getting fitter and reducing carbon emissions.

The Travel Hub is run by Huntly Development Trust; visit their website for the story of how they went about it. You can contact them directly via email: hdt@huntly.net. Funding came from the Climate Challenge Fund and Paths for All’s Smarter Choices, Smarter Places fund.

Check out Smarter Choices, Smarter Places success stories for inspiration from other towns around Scotland.

Over the years, Clackmannanshire Council and Walk Wheel Cycle (formerly Sustrans) have built plenty of cycling and walking infrastructure in and around Clackmannan… what was missing was encouraging local people to use it. So, Clackmannan Community Development Trust has been leading a programme of cycle training, rides and maintenance courses to encourage locals back in the saddle again (or for the first time). The council, local schools and Sustrans have all lent their support. It’s a good example of building on infrastructure investment to help people change their behaviours.

As the video explains, it’s a lot easier for community organisations like a development trust to access funding to do this kind of thing. Saddle Up Clackmannan is just one of many projects that the local development trust is leading.

Angus Cycle Hub, a social enterprise which supports and develops cycling in Angus as well as running a bike shop in Arbroath, wanted to find out what people needed to encourage more cycling. Local research revealed that people felt there were no real safe places for cycling directly into the centre of Arbroath.

So, the Cycle Hub team went out and cycled and walked the local area to get a better understanding of the barriers that people faced. That led to a successful application to Paths for All’s Communities Active Travel Fund, which is supported by Transport Scotland.

The result was the Arbroath Active Travel Network – a signposted circular route around the town using footpaths, cycle paths and quiet roads. It means that Arbroath’s residents and visitors can now easily make local walking and cycling journeys.

Delivering this project successfully has also been a stepping stone to achieving more: the next ambition, which emerged through community engagement in a town centre “charrette” in 2016, is to redesign the dual carriageway that runs through the heart of the town, cutting the town centre in two. Sustrans’ Places for Excellence funding and support programme is helping to take the project forward.

For more information, contact Angus Cycle Hub by email: info@anguscyclehub.co.uk.

Active travel, walking, wheeling, and cycling, encourages people to spend more time outside and less time in the car. It addresses road congestion, air pollution, and public health, while also leading to improvements in the future.

Scotland’s national rail service, ScotRail, want to create a railway that enables increased active travel as part of the passenger journey, connecting communities and creating smooth active travel routes.

They aim to deliver this in three ways:

On Train.

A commitment to delivering high quality, on-train cycle storage facilities. This is being achieved through ongoing reviews and investment into their current fleet as well as ensuring appropriate storage is available on newer trains. 

At station. 

To encourage customers to cycle to  stations, ScotRail want to provide infrastructure that makes them feel safe. by working with local partners to install covered cycle storage, CCTV coverage, cycle maintenance stands, and cycle hire facilities.

First and final mile.

Making  it as easy as possible for passengers to get to and from stations without a car by working with local authorities and stakeholders to improve accessibility, walking routes, and active travel connections. 

Benefits to town centres and local communities stretch far beyond initial investment. Creating accessible active travel routes allows visitors and tourists to bring their cycles with them on their journey to explore more of your town. This can indirectly boost the local economy with people spending longer in the community.

It can also mean  improvement of your town’s overall environmental health, as passengers can feel more at ease walking, wheeling, or cycling to the station, as they head off on their next adventure.

According to the Sustrans Walking and Cycling index 2023 Transport Scotland, more than 4,200 long-term illnesses were prevented through active travel.  Economically, £11 million was saved through cycling, and £42.6 million was saved through walking and wheeling.  

By identifying how your town can improve your community, you help bring about real, measurable improvements to your environment. 

Next Steps

The continued pressure on public resources means every investment has to operate efficiently, by maximising the reach of every pound spent. Active travel is about investing now, to provide long-term gains.  

This approach not only delivers more value for customers and the public purse but allows for investment to support Scotland’s wider strategic objectives like the goal to reach net-zero by 2045.

The Government provides active travel funding to Regional Transport Partnerships and Local Authorities to work with ScotRail to develop town centres and local communities.  

ScotRail is keen to be a part of your vision early in the process so they can work in partnership with you to deliver. For enquiries, please contact community@scotrail.co.uk.