Question reference: S6W-01873
- Asked by: Gordon MacDonald, MSP for Edinburgh Pentlands, Scottish National Party
- Date lodged: 26 July 2021
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Current status: Initiated by the Scottish Government. Answered by Graeme Dey on 27 July 2021
Question
To ask the Scottish Government when it plans to launch the Young Person’s Free Bus Travel Scheme for residents of Scotland aged five to 18, provided for by the National Bus Travel Concession Scheme for Young Persons (Scotland) Order 2021.
Answer
Following agreement with the Improvement Service, the National Entitlement Card Programme Office and Young Scot, who are responsible for handling applications for and issuing the National Entitlement Cards on which the national concessionary travel schemes depend, we plan that young people should be able to travel under the new Young Persons Free Bus Scheme from 31 January 2022.
We have previously announced our intention to extend the scope of the scheme to include 19-21 year olds and committed to making as much progress on this as possible this financial year. Subject to Parliamentary approval of the legislation required to amend the age eligibility for the scheme, when the new scheme goes live it will do so for young people up to and including the age of 21.