The Scottish government is to provide up to £9m of emergency funding for Glasgow Subway and Edinburgh Trams in response to the financial impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Transport Scotland said the emergency measures will be in place from July to the end of September and will support services throughout this period.
The funding announcement follows discussions with Strathclyde Partnership for Transport (SPT) and Edinburgh Trams regarding available resources due to the impact of Covid-19 on travel demand.
Michael Matheson, Scotland’s cabinet secretary for transport, infrastructure and connectivity, said: “The Glasgow Subway and Edinburgh Trams provide key connections within our two biggest cities and as we emerge through the stages of lockdown demand for public transport will continue to rise.
“The services provide essential capacity and link with bus, rail and park and ride facilities.
“Over the next three months we will provide up to £9m of financial support to operators to enable services to continue.
“Any restrictions on these services could have placed unsustainable demands on other modes, especially bus and so this funding will assist capacity across all public transport.”
Martin Dean, chair of Edinburgh Trams, welcomed the funding boost, which will ensure that key workers will continue to be able to make essential journeys.
“With strict social distancing requirements and significant loss of revenue, this has been challenging,” said Dean. “However, our colleagues have acted quickly to make necessary changes to our services and worked with us to protect jobs through the government’s Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme.
“This funding will help to support our efforts and keep our services operational. However, 2020 will remain a challenging year for the organisation.”
Read more from CiTTi
https://www.cittimagazine.co.uk/scotland-boosts-ebike-grant-fund/
https://www.cittimagazine.co.uk/extra-funding-to-increase-scottish-bus-services/
