Case study detail
one of the new bus shelters in Dundee
Dundee Quality Bus Network
Contributed by:
Susan Ramsay
Organisation:
Sustainable Development Commission
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Dundee City Council's improvements to the bus network aimed to ensure car use did not increase.
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Overview
Dundee is the fourth largest city in Scotland. It has a population of 145,000 and serves as a regional centre for more than 325,000 people from the surrounding areas. The city itself is undergoing significant redevelopment and regeneration.
Public transport in Dundee is important, as approximately half of all households do not have access to a car. Almost all bus services in the area pass through the city centre. The annual total of bus passengers is 15 million, and 70% of them board or alight in the city centre. A further one in ten of all passenger journeys target Ninewells Hospital.
With the increasing prosperity of the city there is a latent potential for a significant increase in car ownership. Therefore after local consultation regarding public transport, Dundee City Council saw a need to improve the bus network. They aimed to: provide high quality bus passenger facilities to address the needs of those without access to a car and encourage those who do have cars to use bus travel more often; and provide safe reliable services with real time information to help travel choices.
Two initiatives supported financially by the Scottish Executive, Bringing Confidence into Public Transport (BCPT) and the SmartBus Initiative, aimed to achieve these objectives. The initiatives included: upgrading bus stops and shelters; improving accessibility; reducing noise pollution; real-time electronic information displays; static information panels; audio information for the visually impaired at individual bus stops and CCTV on all buses operating in Dundee (which resulted in a 75% reduction in vandalism).
Although other cities have introduced some of the elements in BCPT and SmartBus, implementation of the full package of sustainable transport measures and facilities is rare. Through these initiatives, Dundee City Council is well on the way to achieving a barrier-free city for bus users, not only in physical terms, but also in terms of information and personal safety and security.
Key features
governance
transport
Key data
Project Team: Sustainable Transport Team Leader, Neil Gellatly
Cost:
Local Authority: Dundee City Council
Links
Link to the new Dundee Travel website
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