From 1 April 2025, the Strathclyde Concessionary Travel Scheme will introduce a new concessionary fares structure. This will see a move away from the current basic concessionary fare to a new ‘half-fare with cap’ structure. Capped fares will apply for all ferry journeys and certain rural rail journeys.
It means that from this date, for the majority of concessionary journeys, the Strathclyde Concessionary Travel Scheme will offer a minimum 50% discount against operator standard fares.
The Strathclyde Concessionary Travel Scheme relies on funding from 12 local authorities in the west of Scotland and provides discounts for eligible users on rail, SPT Subway and on ferry services for island and peninsula residents.
The Strathclyde Concessionary Travel Scheme helps facilitate more than 5 million journeys each year at a typical cost of £4.5 million annually to local authorities. With increasing demand for Strathclyde concessionary travel, alongside increasing operator fares, it became clear that without changes, the scheme was in danger of closing or being significantly curtailed with only one or two years’ worth of funding reserves remaining.
The decision to introduce the new fares was made following a review of the scheme carried out in 2020, with recommendations presented to the Scheme’s Joint Committee in March 2021. This review of the scheme was necessary as it was clear that it was experiencing on-going financial pressures and was not sustainable in the medium to long term in its current format.
Fares structure from 1 April 2025
Rail:
- Half the Standard Rail Fare (50% Discount)
- Fares are capped at £2.50 single and £4.00 return between stations within designated rural zones (see eligible stations below)
Subway:
- £1.00 (single)
- £1.75 (return)
Ferry:
- Half the standard ferry operator fare.
- Fares are capped at £2.50 single and £4.00 return across the ferry network.
Eligible rail rural stations*:
a) Oban; Connel Ferry; Taynuilt; Falls of Cruachan; Loch Awe; Dalmally; Bridge of Orchy; Ardlui; Arrochar & Tarbet; Garelochhead; Helensburgh Stations
b) Ayr; Maybole; Barrhill; Girvan
c) Kilmarnock; Auchinleck; New Cumnock
* rail journeys must start or end at stations within one of the designated rural zones above to qualify for a rural capped concessionary fare
Chair of the SCTS Joint Committee, Councillor Stephen Dornan, said:
“While we appreciate and fully support the popularity of the concessionary travel scheme, the basic fare structure it was operating under was putting the scheme at risk. Concessionary fares have not kept pace with wider operator fare increases so the scheme has been costing more year-on-year, and local authorities, facing decreasing budgets, simply cannot afford to contribute more to the scheme.
“This situation has now become financially unsustainable and we faced the very real prospect of losing the scheme if we didn’t make substantial changes. So, from 1st April 2025, we will now implement a half standard fare and a revised cap on ferry and rural rail routes with scheme fares increasing in line with fare inflation each year thereafter. The cap will be set for the first year at £2.50 single and £4.00 return.”
The scheme remains obligated to ensure that transport is affordable for all those who use it.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
The new fares mean Strathclyde Concessionary Travel Scheme journeys will be charged half the standard single or return fare; in other words, the Strathclyde Concessionary Travel Scheme will provide customers with a minimum 50% discount on concessionary journeys in Strathclyde. Certain routes will see capped fare being applied (see Question below on capped fares).
The new fares will apply to all Strathclyde Concessionary Travel Scheme Journeys from 1 April 2025.
The new fares will apply to all Strathclyde Concessionary Travel Scheme journeys on rail, Subway and ferry services that start and end within the Strathclyde area.
A standard fare is the full fare charged by the operator for any single or return journey. Standard fares exclude any form of discounted tickets such as off-peak tickets, multi-journey tickets, books of tickets, travel cards or season tickets.
Since the new structure is based on half the standard fare, it means for the majority of Strathclyde Concessionary Travel Scheme journeys that fares will increase. Only rail journeys over 10 track miles where a half fare is currently already charged will continue to be charged at this rate. However, with 50% fare being applied, the Strathclyde Concessionary Travel Scheme continues to offer generous discounts.
No. A minimum fare of £1.00 single and £1.50 return will apply.
In most cases the concessionary new fare will continue to offer the best value ticket for standard single and return journeys. However, there may be journeys whereby an operator’s product is cheaper e.g. journeys using ScotRail’s Senior Citizens Rail Card which offers 1/3 off off-peak travel and may be cheaper than a Strathclyde Concessionary fare. It is the responsibility of the transport operator to offer the best value product.
Certain concession fares will be capped at £2.50 single and £4.00 return. This means that customers will pay no more than these fares, irrespective of an operator’s standard fare. Capped fares apply on all ferry routes operating within the Strathclyde area and on certain rural rail journeys that start and end between stations listed below within a designated rural zone as follows*:
a) Oban; Connel Ferry; Taynuilt; Falls of Cruachan; Loch Awe; Dalmally; Bridge of Orchy; Ardlui; Arrochar & Tarbet; Garelochhead; Helensburgh Stations
b) Ayr; Maybole; Barrhill; Girvan
c) Kilmarnock; Auchinleck; New Cumnock
* rail journeys must start or end at stations within one of the designated rural zones above to qualify for a rural capped concessionary fare.
The review found that the half fare structure could disproportionately impact people living in some of our most remote and isolated areas, including people living on islands/peninsulas who are more likely to need to travel further distances and pay significantly higher fares in order to access the same essential services and facilities as those living in mainland urban areas. Having capped fares helps reduce the impact of fare increases for people in these more remote areas.
No. Bus travel will remain free for National Entitlement Card holders. Although both concession Schemes do require presenting the same card to prove travel entitlement, the Strathclyde Concessionary Travel Scheme is separate from the free national bus Scheme which is funded and administered separately by Transport Scotland on behalf of the Scottish Government.
No. It has not been possible to include discounted travel for under-22s due to the funding pressures that the Strathclyde Concessionary Travel Scheme continues to experience. Adding additional users to the Scheme would be unaffordable under current budgets.
The Strathclyde Concessionary Travel Scheme is funded entirely out of local authority budgets and currently costs around £4.5 million each year to operate by way of the reimbursement payments that must be paid to participating transport operators for each concessionary journey they carry.
Demand for the Strathclyde Concessionary Travel Scheme has been increasing steadily, with over 5 million journeys now made each year. This demand, alongside regular increases to operator fares, means that the cost of providing the Scheme is increasing sharply.
The current basic concessionary fare structure, where the majority of journeys are charged £1.00 single and £1.50 return, is now considered no longer financially sustainable. Without these changes it is estimated that only one to two years’ worth of funding reserves remain, thereby putting the immediate future of the Strathclyde Concessionary Travel Scheme at serious risk.
Following reports presented by SPT highlighting the seriousness of the funding position, the Scheme’s Joint Committee, the board of elected members representing each of the 12 funding local authorities, approved that an in-depth review of the Scheme should be carried out.
The review in 2020 explored a range of options, with the half fare introduction shown to be the most equitable way to safeguard the future of the Scheme. Stakeholder and user engagement formed part of the review process.
The review findings were presented before the Joint Committee in March 2021, recommending the half fare with cap structure. The Joint Committee, in recognising the importance of concessionary travel, took the decision to agree the recommendations as this was considered necessary in order to safeguard the Scheme’s future.
The new fares were intended to be introduced from 1 April 2021, however, the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic meant demand for concessionary travel reduced significantly, placing less immediate pressure on the Scheme’s finances.
The Joint Committee also decided that it was important that those who had to make essential journeys, during the pandemic, for example, healthcare workers, people travelling for medical reasons or to care for vulnerable person(s), could continue to do so without additional financial burden.
While the covid pandemic and recovery led to that decision being deferred, demand for travel has now returned to pre-covid levels, and alongside operator regular fares increases, means funding pressures continue. It is important that the new concessionary fares be introduced from 1 April 2025 in order to safeguard the Scheme.