The Scottish Government is to provide a further £4 million of emergency funding for Glasgow Subway and Edinburgh Trams in response to the on-going financial impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.

This follows detailed discussions with Strathclyde Partnership for Transport (SPT) and Edinburgh Trams regarding available resources due to the unprecedented impact that Covid 19 has had on travel demand. These discussions have been undertaken in light of our published COVID–19: Framework for Decision Making and the Transport Transition Plan.

This latest emergency measure is in addition to the £9 million announced in July and will be in place until the end of 2020 to support services throughout this period.

Cabinet Secretary for Transport, Infrastructure and Connectivity Michael Matheson said: “The Glasgow Subway and Edinburgh Trams continue to provide key connections within our two biggest cities. The services provide essential capacity and link with bus, rail and park and ride facilities.

“Over the six month period from July we will now have provided up to £13 million of financial support to operators to enable services to continue. Any restrictions on these services could have placed unsustainable demands on other modes, especially bus and so this funding will assist capacity across all public transport.

“I would again like to thank all the people working across the light rail sector who have, and continue to, provide these important connections. These services have allowed our key workers and others who needed to travel for essential journeys to do so during very challenging circumstances. The subway and tram will help our wider society and economy recover as we go through the next phases of this pandemic. We will continue to monitor the demand, capacity and costs of support across all transport modes.”

Martin Dean, Chair of Edinburgh Trams said: “The additional funding being offered from Transport Scotland is welcomed news, especially as we navigate the challenges of fresh restrictions in the area. The ongoing financial support allows us to continue to operate our services for anyone who relies on the city’s tramway to make essential journeys. We are grateful to Transport for Edinburgh for leading on these negotiations on behalf of our organisation.”