Unliomite free travel is now being provided to 1000 people in Glasgow, as a pilot project gets under way. According to The National, the city’s free public transport scheme launched on Monday, giving seven weeks of free journeys on buses, trains and the subway to participants.

Those taking part in the pilot include people who regularly rely on private cars and residents who face barriers to travel, such as patients who struggle to afford the cost of getting to hospital appointments.

Councillors approved the use of £225,000 for the scheme, which aims to assess the impact of fare-free public transport on travel behaviour, late last year.

People taking part in the project received a Zonecard, allowing travel across the city and surrounding area at no cost.

The pilot will monitor whether free transport encourages a shift away from private car use and assess how reducing costs impacts access to employment, education and healthcare.

It has been hailed as a “gamechanger” by the city’s Green group, which pushed for the project to go ahead.

Cllr Christy Mearns, transport spokesperson for the Greens, said: “This pilot will demonstrate the transformative effect of making transport more accessible.

“With so many people unable to use public transport in ways that suit them, due to cost, and given many don’t have access to a car, it’s imperative that we challenge this head on.

(Picture: First Bus)