Chamber and committees

Scottish Government submission dated 21 October 2021

PE1866/C: Introduce legislation to improve bus travel for wheelchair users

Thank you for your letter of 10 September (further to our letter of 17 June) on the above petition asking if there is capacity for the issues raised in the petition to be addressed via the implementation of the provisions of the Transport (Scotland) Act 2019 (“the 2019 Act”) covering bus services such as those which relate to bus service improvement partnerships (BSIPs) and local services franchises (LSFs).

The Public Service Vehicles Accessibility Regulations 2000 (PSVAR) is reserved legislation and it is this that requires buses and coaches carrying over twenty two passengers on local or scheduled routes to incorporate features such as a ramp, wheelchair space and lift to enable disabled people to travel safely and in comfort. Both forward and rear facing wheelchair spaces on buses are regulated by PSVAR. The UK Government has committed to complete a review of these regulations by the end of 2023.

Further to this, in the context of BSIPs and LSFs, the provisions in the 2019 Act operate in such a way as to place the setting of any service standards for local bus services within the competence of local transport authorities (either through a partnership scheme in the case of a BSIP or a franchising framework in the case of an LSF). Whilst there is no provison for Ministers to intervene directly, we would expect local transport authorities and bus operators to work closely together to ensure that the required service standards meet the needs of local communitites including people with disabilities.

You may also be aware that we recently consulted (closing date 6 October) on implementing part 3 (bus services) of the 2019 Act. The consultation document is available via the following web link Implementation of Part 3 (bus services) of the Transport (Scotland) Act 2019 and includes at p.36 a section on the accessibility of services in the context of the provision of guidance on BSIPs. The consultation results are currently being analysed and will be published in due course, as will the response to the consultation once the results have been fully considered.