Rural Health Transport – Air Transport Briefing by Doug Blackie

Read Time: 12 mins

 Loga Air Western Isles Pic 2

 Background

  • Scotland’s rural and island communities are served by a small network of regional airlines that can provide non-emergency health care transport.
  • The main operator, Loganair, flies to Orkney, Shetland and the Outer and Inner Hebrides using a mixture of twin-engine piston, turboprop and jet aircraft. Hebridean Air Services operates established routes from Oban to Coll, Tiree and Colonsay, and between Benbecula and Stornoway, using smaller nine-seat twin-engine aircraft.
  • Because of low passenger volumes and rising operating costs, most of these flights attract some level of government subsidy.
  • Government subsidy of these commercial flights is arguably as important to rural and island health care in Scotland as the NHS’s own ambulance and air ambulance fleets. For places such as Lewis and Harris, Orkney and Shetland, these routes are not really about tourism or business; they are the everyday infrastructure that gets patients, consultants and medical supplies where they need to be.

Air Transport Subsidy Policy Levers

The Scottish Government, local councils and NHS Boards have three main policy levers for subsidising flights to and from remote and island communities in support of non-emergency health transport.

Public Service Obligation (PSO) Routes

  • The Scottish Government or councils put PSO contracts in place when the market cannot sustain regular air services. A PSO obliges the airline to maintain the route and guarantees regular flight frequencies and capped fares.
  • One example is the Orkney Islands Council PSO for the network of Loganair flights from Kirkwall (Orkney Mainland) to Papa Westray, North Ronaldsay, Westray, Sanday, Stronsay and Eday. The PSO is explicitly intended to serve residents travelling to appointments, alongside teachers and visiting health staff. Another example is the Benbecula–Stornoway PSO, which provides a vital link for patients travelling to essential health services in Inverness via Stornoway.

Air Discount Scheme (ADS)

  • The ADS provides a 50% fare discount for residents of the Highlands and Islands (including Orkney, Shetland and the Western Isles) on eligible routes. It aims to tackle high fares and improve social inclusion, has no cap on the number of trips, and has been extended by the Scottish Government to at least March 2027.

NHS-Specific Contracts

  • NHS Western Isles, NHS Orkney and NHS Shetland each hold their own fixed-price contracts with Loganair, used solely for patient travel. These contracts are adjusted periodically to reflect inflation and operate in addition to the PSO and ADS subsidy schemes. In some cases, Loganair offers compassionate fares for family members or escorts.

 Why Subsidies Matter

Lack of Alternatives

  • In many cases, people living in rural and island communities have no efficient, affordable alternative for travelling to health care appointments.
  • For example, NHS Western Isles depends entirely on air and sea travel to move patients and staff between Barra, the Uists, Benbecula and Stornoway, and onward to Inverness and Glasgow. This travel accounts for roughly 13,450 flight seats a year for patients alone.
  • Where alternatives do exist (for example, road or ferry travel), journeys can be longer and more difficult. This adds considerable stress for patients and their families, including out-of-pocket costs (for example, petrol, accommodation and meals), personal risk (for example, fatigue and poor weather), and problems with employment and childcare.
  • The impact was clear when Inverness–Stornoway flights were suspended in 2026. Patients who could normally make a same-day round trip to Raigmore Hospital had to make an overnight, multi-leg journey by ferry and bus instead. For patients needing intensive treatment, such as cancer chemotherapy, kidney dialysis or surgery, long detours by car or bus can be extremely difficult.

Improving Access to Care at Home

  • The subsidised routes also allow visiting GPs, consultants and specialists to travel out to rural and island communities, not just patients to travel in. Disruption to these services therefore cuts both ways, with clear consequences for access to health care in many of these communities.

Supporting Service Resilience

  • Subsidies are a policy response to market failure: a situation in which a service is clearly needed but, because of high costs and low revenue, cannot be provided by the market alone. Government is often called on to bridge the gap between profit and loss, ensuring that vital services are provided and that the operator can break even or earn a modest margin for providing them.
  • For example, Loganair’s withdrawal of morning flights between Inverness and Sumburgh, Kirkwall and Stornoway in 2026 was widely reported as creating serious problems for patients and NHS Scotland. As noted above, the cancellations also reduced access to care because consultants and other health care professionals could no longer fly efficiently to the islands.

 Policy Debate and Impact of Disruption

There is an ongoing policy debate about whether the current patchwork of subsidies is fit for purpose.

  • A HITRANS report argued that the current approach, split between Transport Scotland, the Air Discount Scheme and individual councils, is “piecemeal” and produces uneven fares and service quality. HITRANS has proposed a unified Scottish PSO network instead, at a broadly similar total cost (around £30–32 million a year).
  • Locally, NHS Western Isles has flagged that the Benbecula–Stornoway PSO contract is “becoming unaffordable for the local authority”, with reduced frequency already limiting patients’ ability to make same-day return trips.
  • It cannot be emphasised strongly enough that air transport subsidies for rural and island communities are not simply a “nice-to-have”.
  • Subsidies support the principle of rural equity. Policies and programmes must be effectively rural proofed, so that they are not based on assumptions arising from a lack of evidence or an urban-centred view. People living in the Central Belt, for example, may take road, bus and train networks for granted; people living in rural and island communities cannot. Subsidised air transport substitutes for the transport networks that most of mainland Scotland takes for granted.
  • Any loss or interruption of these subsidised services, whether through route cancellation, fare rises, strikes or contract disputes, falls directly on patients. They face longer journeys, missed same-day appointments, expensive overnight stays, interrupted employment, childcare complications, or greater reliance on the NHS’s own, more expensive, air ambulance and Coastguard resources for what should be routine travel.

The 2026 Loganair Dispute

  • The 2026 dispute between Loganair and Highlands and Islands Airports Limited (HIAL) compounded the ongoing debate over the effectiveness and cost of rural and island air transport subsidies.
  • The chronology shows that Loganair and HIAL entered negotiations in April 2026 to address a funding shortfall on the Inverness flights to Stornoway, Kirkwall and Sumburgh. Government ministers and NHS Boards were not included in these talks, despite the clear implications for access to health services.
  • When the talks broke down, Loganair cut its flights to Stornoway, Kirkwall and Sumburgh and sought an annual subsidy of £1.3 million.
  • NHS Boards had to scramble to respond because there were no contingency plans to ensure timely and effective patient transport.
  • The Scottish Parliament’s Transport Committee became involved in summer 2026, criticising the secrecy of the discussions and the inadequacy of HIAL’s subsidy offer to Loganair.
  • By 6 August, the Scottish Government had approved a subsidy of £1.06 million to HIAL to enable Loganair to restore services by 26 October 2026.

 The Benbecula–Stornoway PSO Issue

  • In 2024, Western Isles Council re-tendered the Benbecula–Stornoway PSO and chose the lower-cost bid from Hebridean Air Services over the incumbent operator, Loganair.
    • This decision had an immediate impact as the smaller 9-passenger Hebridean Air Services aircraft is arguably not fit for purpose (compared to the larger Loganair aircraft), meaning that patients and/or companions are often left behind and must travel by ferry or road.
    • Western Isles Council believed that the loss of the Stornoway-Benbecula PSO may have been related in some way to Loganair’s decision to cancel the Inverness-Stornoway route in 2026, but this is unconfirmed.
    • This dispute does speak to the piecemeal nature of PSO management, in that NHS Western Isles was not a party the Benbecula-Stornoway PSO procurement process.
    • Shifting away from Loganair, for example, may have also reduced coordination of flight timetables enabling visiting health professionals to efficiently travel onward to Benbecula, the Uists and Barra.
  • Western Isles Council and NHS Western Isles have still not fully resolved these issues.

Analysis

The HIAL–Loganair dispute and the Western Isles Council’s change of PSO operator are separate but interrelated issues. Both have had ongoing negative effects on people who need efficient, affordable air transport for health services. The two disputes have exposed the following issues.

Air Subsidies Can Be Structurally Fragile

  • Every route in both cases is unprofitable without public money, yet funding is set contract by contract and procurer by procurer (for example, Transport Scotland and HIAL for trunk routes, and individual island councils for inter-island PSO routes) rather than through a single coherent framework.
  • This is exactly the “piecemeal” system the HITRANS report criticised, and it explains why two separate funding disputes affected NHS Western Isles within about two years of each other.

Health Impact Is Rarely Considered

  • In both cases, the NHS Board most affected was not part of the negotiation or tender process. NHS Western Isles said so explicitly about the Benbecula–Stornoway PSO, and in the Inverness dispute discussions ran for months between Loganair and HIAL alone before health boards, councils or ministers were brought in.
  • Health care access is a major justification cited after the fact for restoring services, but it is not built into how contracts are procured or funded up front.

Lowest-Bid Contracts Can Ignore Clinical Needs

  • The Western Isles Council’s decision to drop Loganair and award the Benbecula–Stornoway PSO contract to Hebridean Air Services was financially rational (it was the only bid within budget) but produced an aircraft that is not necessarily fit for purpose (for example, too small for medical companion travel, and unreliable in poor weather).
  • This is a classic case of procurement optimising for cost (protecting the Council’s funding budget) without weighing clinical suitability (NHS Western Isles’ remit), because those responsibilities sit with different public bodies.

Risk of Piecemeal, Reactive Short-Termism

  • The loss of Loganair services in June 2026 was resolved only after substantial public campaigning, media attention, cross-party MSP pressure and a Holyrood committee session to close a funding gap of a little over £1 million. That gap was small relative to the scale of the disruption, which included the loss of same-day health care access for island residents and other risks including extensive road travel, and patients foregoing care. The imbalance between the size of the ask and the difficulty of securing it is likely to keep recurring under the current funding architecture.
  • The planned restoration of Loganair’s Inverness flights to Stornoway, Kirkwall and Sumburgh by 26 October 2026 should resolve the immediate crisis, but it does not address the underlying pattern of financial losses cited by Loganair. A similar cliff edge could therefore recur.

Key Messages

Develop a Cohesive, Unified Health Transport Subsidy Framework

  • There is a clear need for a unified health transport subsidy framework with a single point of reference, reducing the challenges caused by multiple players with competing agendas.
  • HITRANS has criticised the “piecemeal” approach to the negotiation, funding and oversight of the various health transport subsidy programmes.
  • The current piecemeal approach also disperses and undermines accountability for results. The two recent disputes illustrate the risks of not local councils failing to engage health boards, communities and patients in decisions about health transport.

Rural Proofing Policy and Programmes

  • Focus on equitable access to health care services by ensuring that policies and programmes are effectively “rural proofed”. This means engaging with rural communities and service providers (such as NHS Boards and the Rural GP Association) so that health impacts are fully understood, and co-developing programmes and policies that uphold rural equity and meet the health transport needs of rural and island people.
  • Rural proofing also requires policy makers and programme designers to develop a greater evidence-based understanding of, and empathy for, the lived reality of rural and island people who need health care transport. It means recognising that “one size fits all” approaches developed for urban and Central Belt areas can be meaningless, and potentially harmful, when applied to rural and island communities, however well intentioned.
  • Rural empathy means understanding that people in rural and island communities may lack affordable, realistic transport alternatives. This can include poverty (for example, lack of a reliable car), the risks of long road journeys in poor weather, and extensive out-of-pocket costs. In some cases, people may forgo health services, risking deterioration in their health, increased disease burden and higher costs to the health care system.

Adopt a Collaborative Partnership Approach

  • A transparent, accountable partnership approach to the procurement of air transport services, and to the negotiation of subsidy contracts with operators, will help ensure that operational, fiscal and health needs are weighted appropriately in procurement and operational roll-out. It will also help ensure that local funding authorities and air transport operators fully understand, and support, the importance of these services to patients, families and health care providers.

 To discuss any aspect of this briefing paper further, please contact This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

 

Jenny's Bornholm Musings - Part 2

Read Time: 6 mins

So, if you missed my first article on how I got to and from the island of Bornholm in Denmark for a tourism conference, then click here to read the first instalment. I hinted in the article that buses would be a topic of conversation, and it is front and centre of this diary entry. Although I didn’t use the bus, it was not for the want of wishing to. As previously mentioned, there were no buses available when I arrived off the ferry at 845pm. However, some colleagues who flew onto the island arriving mid-afternoon did indeed have the option of a bus and a taxi, so here is their story.

They arrived at the airport to find pre-booked taxis only but when they tired contacting the company or message through they app, they were told to ring back later as the taxi company was busy. So, the group decided to go for the bus. The driver asked for tickets, but here is when the challenge started. Several people had taken cash and various others tried to download the app but did not get very far as they were required to have e-banking. In addition, the bus left before the passengers could download the app. So having encountered a problem with the app, they offered cash, but the driver could not accept. So, what happened? A few didn’t get on the bus and ended up befriending complete strangers who were also visiting the island who let them share a taxi as they were all going in the same direction. For those that had got on the bus and still hadn’t managed to download the app, they got a free bus ride.

 

For the return journey at the end of the conference, there were coaches put on which transported some of the delegates, whilst others stayed on the island to enjoy what was on offer. However, in light of their challenges with buses and taxis, they opted to walk the 2km to the airport as it was a nice day and they had a small amount of luggage.

Over the years I have heard about the various different transport ‘apps’ in Denmark, through my work on Mobility as a Service. The challenges these colleagues faced are not unique to Denmark, in fact you will find that rural buses in the UK also provide free travel when ticket machines are not working and drivers are unable to take bank cards or cash. I’m sure we either know someone that this has happened to or experienced it ourselves.

For those of you that read the previous article, I’m sure you are wondering how my bus experience was from Copenhagen airport to Ystad to catch the ferry. Finding the information on the bus took some online searching but, once found, the process of booking the seat was straightforward. It was a double decker bus, clean, no free wifi that I could find, but every seat was taken. The journey was smooth and no issues going through the border at Sweden. Would I take it again? Yes, but would I take it knowing that I needed transport at the other end in Ronne? No. There are only a handful of hire cars on the island and although I spotted many people on bikes (including the postwoman), I didn’t easily spot bike hire at the ferry terminal or in my walk around town. However, many of the hotels do provide, free of charge bikes to help you get around, although sadly you cannot leave them at the airport or ferry terminal!

So, what is the answer for buses and visitors as we navigate through this digitalisation expansion? For me, it is about keeping the offer simple and providing better information, for example rural and island bus stops in the UK often now do not contain paper timetables or basic information. QR codes and the reliability of the mobile phone and data are expected. This is not helpful. In the airport at Ronne it would have been advantageous for information to be clearly presented before heading out to the bus stop or taxi rank. Accommodation providers, such as hotel receptions, often become an informal ‘travel hub’ providing local knowledge on options rather than flyers or information packs. Information is king when travelling, and without it, things have a tendency to unravel. So, the next time you are thinking of taking the bus (for some of us that’s not often as we don’t have easy access to one, but anyway), take a moment and think about how a visitor would know what they need to know to use that service. As the phrase goes, if you don’t know what you need to know, how do you know what to know? For example, in Scotland, many rural bus services are linked with school transport and thus do not operate outside of term time or on Fridays when some schools only have a half day. How are you meant to know this?! I’ve learnt the hard way, don’t make assumptions and don’t be afraid to ask someone as you cannot beat local lived experience and information.

Jenny's Bornholm Musings - Part 1

Read Time: 10 mins

When the opportunity arose to present a paper at a Tourism conference on the island of Bornholm in Denmark in September 2025, it was one not to be missed. Wearing all the different work hats that I do, it would not only give an opportunity to share the findings of a survey from the Cairngorm National Park (Scotland) on rural visitor tourism and Mobility as a Service, but also the chance to experience first-hand island transport in Denmark, particularly ferries. This is the first blog which will provide some insights from myself on the trip to and from Bornholm.

I’ve previously visited central Denmark and explored the rural transport in Denmark through a European Union knowledge exchange programme,. The country has some great initiatives, some of which would be great to see in the UK, however the experience getting to Bornholm shed a less positive light on island transportation. In 2018, the Express 5, the world’s largest catamaran fast ferry service was introduced. Given that Scottish Rural and Island Transport Community (SRITC) (CIC) was undertaking a project on water transport for the Foundation of Integrated Transport (FIT) it seemed fitting to use this service on at least one of the legs.

The Outward Journey

Planning a trip like this you would think would be a ‘walk in the park’ for someone so passionate about transport and connectivity. However, in keeping with concerns over flight connections and delays, I had not prebooked the ferry in case I missed it. For context, it requires a bus/train/taxi to Ystad from Copenhagen which means going across the Oresund bridge to Sweden before getting to Ystad. Plan A was to take the train down to Ystad, but the night before I was to travel, all but two sailings were cancelled due to wind. The sailing still scheduled to run were 6:30pm and another around 10-11pm and neither were on the Express 5 as it can’t operate in wind.

I found it very difficult to find information on services as both were showing as ‘sold out’. Even with the help of a cousin living in Copenhagen, it wasn’t until I was sitting at Edinburgh airport early in the morning to leave, that I got a golden nugget of information from the conference organiser: if you book a bus from Copenhagen airport to Bornholm you are guaranteed a foot passenger ticket. I got the last bus ticket. Even my relatives in Copenhagen weren’t aware of this fact! Worst case scenario was to get to Copenhagen and stay with family. All flights (20-30 passengers max) were booked or not operating due to the weather. So, I boarded my flight from Edinburgh, meeting some new colleagues on the plane, but they were taking the connecting flight from Copenhagen rather than the ferry.

On arrival at Copenhagen airport, I made my way out to find the bus stop (thank you google maps). I wasn’t sure I was at the right stand, but passengers with luggage were a reassuring sign. In natural Jenny fashion, I heard a couple (Poul and Susanne) speak English, so I started a conversation, and they reassured me that I was getting on the right bus as they live on the Island. They then suggested I tag along with them for the rest of the journey. We shared lots of stories and it was great to have the company particularly when on arrival at the ferry terminal, as the ticket barrier wasn’t working correctly which caused wide confusion.

Once on the other side of the barrier we boarded another bus which took us onto the ferry where we disembarked and headed up the lift to find a seat. The three of us sat and had some dinner as this was not a 1hr 20minute crossing as originally planned but rather a nearly 3hrs trip. I soon discovered that the ferry offerings were different from my experience with NorthLink Ferries in Scotland who provide and support local food suppliers and community products. This was most definitely disappointing and felt like a missed opportunity.

During the ferry trip my new friends advised me to book a taxi as we would arrive about 8:45pm and wiith the hotel being a few kilometres away, not the best for walking to with luggage. I duly downloaded the ‘app’, Dantaxi, and placed my booking for 9pm. On arrival at the terminal, I stood with my new friends waiting for the taxi to appear. It didn’t, and after 15minutes they said they had to go with friends to collect their car.

By this time, there were a good number of conference delegates also looking for transport. No bus, no taxis, no cargo bikes, no hire cars and no answer from the taxi company on the phone. We did try the hotel but they couldn’t send someone for over 1hr, so we made the decision to walk to the hotel. However, just as we started, my new friends came by to check that the taxi had appeared, which it had not, and offered us a lift, which I gladly accepted.

The Conference 

The conference was held in a fantastic venue, Hotel GSH, which is well known for its sustainable credentials. I’ll save the detail on the conference for another blog post but the hotel I was staying at was just a short walk away on the beach with fabulous views. I did take the time to wonder into the town of Ronne and naturally took some photos of the postwoman and various different other modes of transport.

On one of the evening's during the trip we had a study visit trip and I was fortunate enough to go to Gourmet Bornholm which is about 30 minutes away by coach on the other side of the island near Gudhjem. A great venue and right beside an agricultural museum so the obligatory photo of a tractor was taken and sent home. That night we were served some island made cider and various other drinks and if I could buy them in the UK, I’d have an addiction! So, I had to ask why these weren’t available, along with all the great produce that the island exports, on the ferries. I then learnt this is to do with the procurement process and the successful win by Bornholmslinjen in 2018. It appears this is not a tender requirement which was sad to hear.

The Return Trip

So how did I get back to Scotland you might be wondering? Well, I asked the conference organisers if they could give me a lift to the airport, a few kilometres away, as a few days before, when I went to book a taxi for 7:45am for the day of departure at the hotel they raised a concern. There are only a handful of taxis on the island, and they do the school runs so the hotel staff didn’t have confidence they could turn up to get me to the airport in time for my 8:45am flight. Now I have to state for those of you that haven’t travelled through an island airport before, you don’t need to be there early. The check in desk opened at 815am for my flight and security is in a very small area. However, what I did learn from the receptionist at the hotel, is that her husband is a chief off the island, and he was training to become a taxi driver because of the shortage. Suffice to say, the kind conference organisers gave me a lift to the airport as there was no one else getting that flight, so no car share available either.

You may be wondering why I’m focusing on the trip out. Well, on the trip home I used the connecting flight to Copenhagen from the island which went well, and you even received a complimentary drink on the short flight. However, the flight back to Edinburgh was delayed which did mean arriving late to a friend’s wedding, but I got there. (I got changed at Edinburgh airport and swore at rush hour traffic on the bypass, but I got there!)

Reflections

So, what can I reflect upon from my travel experience to the island of Bornholm? Firstly, although in the UK we find communication on delays and cancellations difficult, there are more channels used. For my cancellations it was only the ferry website saying ‘cancelled’ or ‘sold out’ that provided any information. Secondly, that integrating a bus service from the airport, through a border and onto a ferry to unload passengers as one ticket, was a great idea. However, you need to be in the ‘know’ to ‘know’, particularly during delays about accessing that all important seat when it says the sailing is ‘sold out’. The cost was only £23.11 for nearly 5hrs of travelling which was good value. The food on board, not so good.

Thirdly, the island requires investment and community support, not only for better food on the ferry but also for visitor and resident transport. There should be more connectivity from the terminal as a person either arrives at the airport or at the terminal. As a side note, there are only 2 hire cars available at the airport, so car hire staff do take people into Ronne due to the lack of services.

Fourthly, this is going to be a car centric island that in turn will rely on the ferry as the lack of infrastructure means a car is nearly a must. Fifthly, I was lucky to find some new friends who tried to help with the transport planning from their own personal resident-lived experiences. I remain grateful and privileged that the informal modes of transport that exist in rural areas in the UK, (lift share amongst friends, communities) exist on this island.

Finally, I was really disappointed with my outward travel experiences given my knowledge of the transport successes in rural central Denmark. It is on my ‘to do’ list to speak to colleagues there to find out if they can reach out to those on Bornholm to offer some help, support and advise. For an island that has 40,000 inhabitants and over 600,000 visitors per year there is definitely room for improvement. The Destination Management Organisation (DMO), Destination Bornholm are doing a great job, but there are some quick wins to be had and some longer improvements required.

Would I do it all again? Most certainly, and now I’m more informed of the challenges on how to get to Ronne and my hotel, it does arm me with knowledge to make the experience better. By sharing this experience, I am hoping to highlight the different challenges that different places have, whilst also providing some lived transport experience so you can go to Bornholm too!

Watch out for my next article on Bornholm… it might just be about buses!

 

New Insurance Solution for Community Car Clubs

Read Time: 5 mins

New Insurance Solution Secures the Future of Community Car Clubs Across the UK

We're delighted to announce that a new insurance solution for small community car clubs has been found. The Derwent Valley Car Club (DVCC), run by the Blackhall Mill Community Association, has announced a breakthrough partnership with Business Choice Direct (BCD) supported by the Scottish Rural & Islands Transport Community (SRITC), addressing one of the greatest threats facing community-led transport. With the withdrawal of previous insurance providers, up to 40 car clubs across the UK were recently at risk of closure, leaving communities without access to this vital, low-cost and sustainable transport option.

Since 2020, SRITC community members have raised concerns during monthly online cafés, leading to a call for evidence that drew over 40 responses. These highlighted the challenges of losing car clubs as well as their social, economic, and environmental value. A strategic focus group was then formed, bringing together communities, policymakers, government, and industry, to explore both urgent solutions for car clubs at risk and longer-term ways to ensure sustainable, affordable shared transport.

The work also complements ongoing efforts by Como UK and the Community Transport Association (CTA), who continue to provide vital advocacy, research, and support for shared mobility and community transport providers across the UK.

Until now, insurance products were typically restricted to larger schemes with three or more vehicles, excluding the majority of small, rural clubs. The new package, developed through collaboration between DVCC, BCD, and SRITC, provides affordable and flexible insurance for car clubs with two or more vehicles, unlocking access to shared transport for many more communities. DVCC’s “Car Club in a Box” model - eCo Car Club, developed through more than a decade of successful operation in the North East, provides the framework and governance standards to support the creation of this insurance pathway.

Jamie Park from Blackhall Mill Community Association (DVCC), says:
“The lack of accessible insurance has been the single greatest challenge facing community car clubs across the UK. This partnership with Business Choice Direct and SRITC provides a lifeline, ensuring clubs can continue to cut costs, reduce car dependency, and give people real transport choices. It’s a turning point for community mobility.”

Jenny Milne, Founder of SRITC:
“This breakthrough shows what can be achieved when communities, organisations, and policymakers work together. By connecting our members and amplifying their concerns, we’ve helped deliver a practical insurance solution that will keep vital car clubs on the road. The next step is finding a way forward for clubs operating with fewer than two vehicles, so no community is left behind.”

Tristan Scaife, Director of Commercial, Business Choice Direct, says:
“The BCD team and I are delighted to offer this new insurance product to community car clubs in need. This would not have been possible without the support and insight of DVCC and SRITC, whose help was key in bringing insurers to the table. We look forward to supporting new, re-forming, and existing groups in the near future.

The creation of this insurance solution was made possible by the collaborative efforts of DVCC, BCD, SRITC, and Edge Innovation. Early feasibility research was supported by the Department for Transport and Connected Places Catapult, while the Royal Countryside Fund backed development of the Car Club in a Box model, recognising its potential to strengthen rural mobility and resilience. This development mean that car clubs can once again thrive, giving communities across the UK a practical, low-carbon way to improve transport access and reduce emissions.

If you would like to learn more about the new insurance solution, please contact Tristan Scaife: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or Susan Ross: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

About the project contributors
This project has been shaped with input from a wide range of organisations, through consultation and involvement in the focus group, including:

Guest Blog - SRITC response to the Islands Connectivity Plan by James Gleave

Read Time: 7 mins

Recently, SRITC had the opportunity to submit its response to the Scottish Government's Islands Connectivity Plan (ICP). For the island communities of Scotland issues associated with the ferries have been very well known for a long time. And so with the Scottish Government setting out its plan, we thought it best to provide our view based on our contacts from and knowledge of the islands.

To summarise the ICP, it aims to enhance the transport links for island communities, replacing the current Ferries Plan with a broader scope that includes ferries, aviation, fixed links, and connecting travel. The plan focuses on modernising the ferry fleet, reducing the average age of vessels, and increasing the standardisation of vessels and ports to improve reliability and resilience​.

Key actions include:

  • Modernising the fleet: Reducing the average age of ferries to around 15 years old by the end of the decade.
  • Resilience building: Standardising vessels and ports to ensure consistent service.
  • Community needs assessments: Conducting updated assessments for communities served by the Clyde & Hebrides and Northern Isles Ferry Services to tailor transport solutions​
  • Fixed link appraisals: Evaluating fixed link proposals for routes such as the Sound of Harris and Sound of Barra​.

The plan also emphasises sustainability, aiming to reduce carbon emissions and integrate ferry services with other modes of transport to support health, well-being, and economic growth. It includes a financial sustainability strategy to address rising costs and ensure long-term viability. The Scottish Government is committed to making these services reliable, affordable, and inclusive to enhance the quality of life for island residents and promote economic development.

There were many questions for us to answer, and we did our best to answer them all. But we thought we would give a flavour of the main issues that we have raised.

The first issue that we covered in our response is the importance of a reliable and regular ferry service. We stated that restoring these services to a reliable and regular operation needs to be the top priority of the plan. We know how important these services are for the island communities of Scotland. People take the ferries to education, health appointments, seeing friends and family, and they provide a critical economic link for these islands.

The second issue is one that is regularly discussed at our cafes, namely the accessibility and affordability of ferry services. The cost of travelling to and from the islands are a significant barrier to their economic development. This is not just a personal cost to islanders either. Economic sectors where island communities can lead upon, such as renewable energy generation, face additional costs as a result of these remote connections. We also made a suggestion that accessibility standards need to be written into contracts for services so that operators can be judged by them, and sanctioned where they fall short.

We also raised a number of areas of improvement, particularly in relation to integrated and public transport, which SRITC strongly advocates for.

The reality is that the whole journey needs to be seamless, including steps of the journey some distance from the crossing itself. But from our evidence, we have identified a number of factors specifically relating to the crossings and the immediate trips that, when developed with the close engagement of the community, could have a significant impact on the number of people using sustainable transport:

Close working with local sustainable tourism initiatives. There is significant potential for many islands to be at the forefront of sustainable and ecotourism, with sustainable travel being a bit part of that. Local tourism initiatives, such as Visit Arran, often have close links with smaller businesses and communities undertaking such work. Simply by promoting this work as part of trips to, from, and between islands, more people can travel by public transport, walking, and cycling.

Reviewing operational procedures in the event of delays. In instances where an operational delay significantly disrupts passengers who are not using a private car, alternative transport and potentially overnight accommodation must be provided by the party responsible for the delay. This needs to be written into the contracts and performance agreements of all future operators with public sector contracts.

Development of mobility hubs at ferry ports. Ferry ports need to be developed in a manner that ensures that access by public transport, walking, and cycling to ferry services is safe and convenient. 

Facilities for active travel on ferries. Current facilities for active travel on many ferry services are somewhat basic, in some cases with bicycles being stored in a corner of the car deck. Facilities for cycling on ferries need to be dedicated and be more than simple areas to store bicycles.

Considering island crossings as a holistic whole. While ferry crossings are the most popular way of travelling to, from, and between islands, other options like air services exist. But these need to be booked separately. If passengers were able to book trips to, from, and between islands, on tickets that are valid on multiple services (subject to pre-booking) as well as local public transport, this is a more attractive offer to potential public transport users.

Underpinning all of this is meaningful community engagement in the improvement and development of services. While investment is welcome, it cannot be done so in a way where island communities feel as though a solution is being done to them as opposed to being developed with them.

Not least because they have an excellent understanding of their own needs, and consequently what solutions are likely to work. We have made a suggestion that representatives of island communities be present on boards with the responsibility for decision making.

Whether this be the Boards making decisions on ferry services, as part of tender exercises for new projects and services, or on specific project boards for individual projects. We would expect this as the absolute minimum for engaging with island communities.

All of this is but a flavour of the comments that we submitted to the Scottish Government. We hope that the ICP is a step in the right direction for improving connectivity to these remote corners of Scotland, and ones that are often overlooked by decision makers. We await the Scottish Government’s response with interest.

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