Transport in Scotland

Examples of transport in Scotland

Transport in Scotland is facilitated by road, rail, air and water networks.[1] The Scottish Government and Scottish Parliament has control over most elements of transport policy within Scotland, with the Cabinet Secretary for Transport holding portfolio responsibility within the Scottish Government.[2] Transport Scotland is the Executive Agency responsible for the Scottish transport network.[3]

The country has five international airports in which Edinburgh Airport is the busiest, handling in excess of 12 million passengers annually.[4] With over 790 islands lying off the Scottish coast, ferry services are primarily operated by Caledonian MacBrayne, a subsidiary of David MacBrayne which is owned by the Scottish Government. Caledonian Maritime Assets is the owner of the ferries, ports, harbours and infrastructure for ferry services serving the west coast of Scotland, the Firth of Clyde and the Northern Isles. In 2022, the countries rail operations were re–nationalised by the Scottish Government who took over the ScotRail franchise as an operator of last resort.[5] Scottish Rail Holdings is the executive agency of the Scottish Government which operate the ScotRail and Caledonian Sleeper services. Glasgow Central railway station is the country's busiest, with over 15 million passengers in 2022.[6]

  1. ^ "Travel in Scotland - Travel Information & Advice". VisitScotland. Retrieved 11 October 2024.
  2. ^ "Cabinet Secretary for Transport, Infrastructure and Connectivity". Scottish Government. Retrieved 1 March 2021.
  3. ^ "About". Transport Scotland. Retrieved 1 March 2021.
  4. ^ "Scottish airports". businessInsider. 26 September 2024. Retrieved 11 October 2024.
  5. ^ "Scottish Government will take over ScotRail services on 1 April 2022". www.transport.gov.scot. Retrieved 11 October 2024.
  6. ^ "Scotland's busiest and quietest train stations revealed". STV News. 24 November 2022. Retrieved 11 October 2024.