Scottish Government allocates £20m for improved bus infrastructure

Jim Fairlie

Meeting the commitment outlined in the Programme for Government, the investment will improve bus infrastructure across Scotland and support the First Minister’s priorities of eradicating child poverty, growing the economy, tackling the climate emergency, and improving public services.

The investment is supporting the development and construction of a wide range of infrastructure projects across Scotland – from bus lanes and bus priority signals to accessible features and transport hubs. These improvements are designed to shorten journey times, increase reliability, and improve integration with other modes of transport, ultimately encouraging more people to choose the bus over private vehicles.

The investment was announced by the minister for agriculture and connectivity, Jim Fairlie, while visiting the Glasgow Operations Centre at Eastgate – a cutting edge hub that unites key city services to deliver real-time, coordinated traffic, safety and emergency management. During that visit, the Minister learned more about how Bus Infrastructure Funding is working to ensure the city can capitalise on advances in AI and machine learning – allowing for smarter bus priority measures, meaning faster journeys for passengers.

Minister for agriculture and connectivity Jim Fairlie said: “I’m pleased that the Scottish Government has allocated £20m through the new Bus Infrastructure Fund.

“Time is everything. This is especially true if you are working or caring for others. Even if those buses are modern and electric, or even if those buses are run by local authorities or commercially run services – if it still takes longer to get to your destination than it does by car – the bus simply can’t compete when it comes to convenience.  

“That is precisely where the Bus Infrastructure Fund works to help. Speeding up bus journeys and making them more reliable is important in making bus services more attractive to more people. We’re also providing funding to improve the quality of bus infrastructure more generally, from the bus stops themselves and information at them, to interchanges making it easier to switch between bus and other ways of travelling. These are all areas, further to free bus travel and new bus powers for local authorities, where the Scottish Government is working to improve the entire bus offer.  

“As such, this investment will be transformative for bus users, helping to improve the attractiveness of bus services and bus patronage. This is vitally important, because we know that bus is one of the best ways to travel for our communities, our cities and our climate.”  

Glasgow City Council convener for transport and climate, Councillor Angus Millar, added: “We were delighted to welcome the Minister to the Glasgow Operations Centre and showcase how AI technology can assist with public transport reliability. The Bus Infrastructure Fund is set to support Glasgow in piloting this innovative system, where real-time traffic signal adjustments will help improve vehicle flow, reduce congestion, and enhance passenger experience.

“The funding will also enable Glasgow to push ahead with design work for two key bus corridors and passenger improvements on Hope Street - one of the city’s busiest interchange points - laying the groundwork for future delivery of high-impact infrastructure that makes bus travel more accessible, reliable, and appealing across Glasgow and the wider region.”

Dr George Hazel OBE, chair of Glasgow City Region Bus Partnership, commented: “For many people across the City Region, bus travel is essential – connecting them to work, education, healthcare, and more. By investing in the planning and design of smarter, more efficient bus infrastructure, we’re helping to create a fairer, greener transport system that supports economic growth, reduces car dependency, and makes public transport a more attractive and accessible option for all.”

Director of the Confederation of Passenger Transport Scotland Paul White, said: “Bus passengers’ top priority is to get to their destination as quickly as possible. We welcome the launch of the Bus Infrastructure Fund to take forward schemes across the country to improve bus speeds and reliability.

“It is vital that buses are given priority on our roads. Freeing buses from congestion enables operators to increase frequencies to grow bus use and generates revenue that can be re-invested in the network, reducing fares, or decarbonising the bus fleet.

“Across Scotland, every pound spent on buses delivers £4.55 in wider social and economic benefits . This fund will ultimately make bus travel more attractive, boosting passenger numbers and encouraging people to leave their cars at home.”