Advisory Board
Advisory Board Chair:
Laurie Pickup
Laurie is a social scientist and leading international expert in the field of transport, gender, and inclusion – a field he has worked in since 1975. He is specifically known for his work on mobility and gender over 48 years, and for his “ground-breaking” work on transport and poverty. His current position and advisory roles include:
• International Director, SLR Consulting (Research and Demonstration Team)
• Honorary Professor of European Transport Policy, University of Aberdeen
• Advisor, World Bank on transport/mobility, accessibility, and gender/diversity issues
• Ambassador, European Commission Diversity network
Laurie has worked on rural mobility issues for nearly five decades in the public sector, academia and in private consultancy. Importantly, Laurie has lived in rural areas for 41 years in the UK (West Berkshire, South Northamptonshire, West Oxfordshire), Italy (Umbria), and a family home in the Danube valley in Romania.
Advisory Board Members:
Alastair McInroy
Ally is a CEO of Technology Scotland, the industry association for Scotland’s Enabling Technology Sector and home to MaaS Scotland, a network of over 70 public and private sector organisations that share a vision to develop and deploy Mobility as a Service solution in Scotland.
Through his work with MaaS Scotland, Ally strongly believes that MaaS has much to offer when considering support for rural economies, offering a chance to improve efficiency and access to often limited transport networks while integrating improved on-demand services.
Email Ally at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
Artemis Pana
Artemis comes from Greece and has a background in equality and social justice. She now lives on the Isle of Raasay, and has served as a National Coordinator of Scottish Rural Action and on the Secretariat team of the Scottish Rural & Islands Parliament since 2020.
She is also on the Board of Raasay Community Renewables, Chair of the Parent Council (well…there are only five kids in the school, and two are hers!) and on the advisory boards of multiple amazing organisations, including SRITC.
Email Artemis at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
Jim Riach
Jim loves riding bikes and has a passion for wild food, beekeeping and the outdoors. He has worked as a professional development officer in the field of cycling for over 30 years.
Starting in 1989 as Scottish Cycling’s first full-time Executive Development Officer, he worked with Cycling Scotland, Keep Scotland Beautiful, Loch Lomond and Trossachs Countryside Trust, and The Carse of Stirling Partnership, where he still leads guided bike rides on and off-road, as well as delivering foraging, biking and beekeeping activities in his spare time.
Jim joined SRITC to help redress the balance between urban and rural transport planning, particularly active travel, and to raise awareness and address the issues facing rural communities.
Kate Pangbourne
A Scottish citizen since 1984, Kate lives in Aberdeenshire and is currently an Associate Professor at the Institute for Transport Studies, University of Leeds. She is also Deputy Director of the Leeds Social Sciences Institute and an Associate of Modeshift.
Her PhD from the University of Aberdeen investigated Scotland’s transport governance. Her research and practice are oriented towards addressing climate change and social inclusion through shifting our transport system, individual choices and collective practices.
She is currently working on evaluating regional MaaS in Scotland (Hitrans Go-Hi app) and disability mobility. Some of her recent projects include improving the persuasiveness of travel behaviour messages (ADAPT) and rail passenger experience (SMARTE).
Linda’s career background is in NHS Scotland, where she grew to various senior positions within the Scottish Ambulance Service (SAS). She was heavily involved in Accident and Emergency ambulance service provision in different areas in Scotland (urban, rural and Islands) and led the previous Patient Transport Service Redesign Strategy.
Linda is the National Convener for the Mobility and Access Committee for Scotland (MACS). She was also appointed as Commissioner with the Scottish Poverty and Inequality Commission and, in 2022, as a Non-Council Board Member with the South of Scotland Regional Transport Partnership (SEStrans). Linda is the previous Convener and is currently a Director with Disability Equality Scotland, and following her position as Chair with Spinal Injuries Scotland, she remains an Ambassador. Since 2020 Linda has also given advice to the Board of the Cairngorms National Park Authority through their Equality Advisory Panel.
She is passionate about fair and equal access for all and has devoted a great deal of her time to advocating the needs of disabled people in relation to transport and travel, including seeking acknowledgement and a stronger focus on the role of transport as an enabler of human rights.
Magnus works for an association of fifteen western Sweden municipalities as a sustainable development strategist. All of his work is based on a structural image he and his colleagues established a few years ago, exploring how sustainable development can occur in uneven geography.
Accessibility is one of the critical strategies. Based on this, he started to work on implementing rural MaaS, which is closely linked to collaborative local development. He came up with a lot of learnings, even during the time of the global pandemic and other challenges.
He has a soft spot for Scotland professionally, where challenges and mindset seem to be similar. Moreover, he is a fan of Harris Tweed and plans to be married in its blue three-piece suit in the fall of 2023.
Michael Willmot
Michael has had a career in further education and a lifelong interest in both sustainable transport and volunteering. He has served on the boards of International Voluntary Service (IVS) and ACoRP (now Community Rail Network) and has chaired the North Staffordshire Community Rail Partnership for 15 years.
In retirement, he oversaw the rescue and restoration of the derelict, listed station building at Helmsdale on the Far North Line as holiday accommodation. Set up as a community interest company, proceeds from lettings are used to support charitable and community causes in Helmsdale, to promote the Far North Line, and to encourage travel by rail and other sustainable transport modes. He subsequently founded and serves as secretary of the newly created Far North Line Community Rail Partnership.
In 2019 Mike and his wife Jenny pioneered travelling the North Coast 500 by public transport. When not on trains or buses, Mike is a keen cyclist and has for many years served as a Sustrans volunteer ranger. He Chairs the Zero Carbon Shropshire Transport Group.
Robina Barton
Robina is a Transport Policy and Projects Officer for Shetland Islands Council and, by extension, ZetTrans, the Regional Transport Partnership. She is from England but has family connections in Shetland, so have been visiting the islands all her life and moved there permanently in 2006.
Her professional background is in heritage and tourism, but she moved into transport planning five years ago thanks to her experience in policy development and project management.
Having done a fair bit of voluntary work around community development, she knows the difference that robust transport connections can make to the islands’ society and economy. She believes in the importance of pooling knowledge and experience across rural and island areas to benefit all.