Bus Service Operators Grant budget: FOI release

Information requested

1. The total annual budget allocated for the Bus Service Operators Grant (also referred to as the bus network support grant), in both cash and real terms.

2. The total amount paid out under this grant in each year.

3. Any internal analysis or reports showing the impact of changes to this funding on the number of supported bus routes or service mileage in Scotland.

4. If available, a breakdown of supported bus routes by local authority for each year.

Response

1) The total annual budget allocated for the Bus Service Operators Grant (also referred to as the bus network support grant), in both cash and real terms.

The following table shows the annual budget for the Bus Service Operators Grant (BSOG) and the Network Support Grant (NSG) since 2014:

BSOG / NSG Budget
Year	Per budget Paper
	£m
2014/15	0
2015/16	0
2016/17	50.7
2017/18	54.2
2018/19	64.2
2019/20	54.2
2020/21	54.2
2021/22	54.2
2022/23	99.4
2023/24	62.5
2024/25	55.5
2025/26	49.5

Please note:

The budget figures are those as set out in the Scottish Parliament of December of each year. Please note there may have been adjustments to the budget at either Autumn Budget Revision or Spring Budget Revision which won’t be shown in these budgets.

These budgets cover Support for Bus which is not solely supporting Bus Services Operator Grant (BSOG)/Network Support Grant (NSG). This includes budget for administrative and other grant costs and for low carbon vehicles / low emission vehicle programmes which cannot be easily identified separately from the Support for Bus budget.

2) The total amount paid out under this grant in each year.

All of the information you have requested is available from the following sources:

• Page 91 of the Scottish Transport Statistics 2024.
• Table 2.9 of the Scottish Transport Statistics Bus and Coach Travel chapter excel spreadsheet, which is available via the Transport Scotland website.

Under section 25(1) of FOISA, we do not have to give you information which is already reasonably accessible to you. If, however, you do not have internet access to obtain this information from the website(s) listed, then please contact me again and I will send you a paper copy.

3) Any internal analysis or reports showing the impact of changes to this funding on the number of supported bus routes or service mileage in Scotland.

No information is held. Transport Scotland does not conduct or retain any analysis regarding the impact of changes to the Bus Service Operators Grant (BSOG) or Network Support Grant (NSG) on the number of supported bus routes or overall service mileage in Scotland.

4) If available, a breakdown of supported bus routes by local authority for each year.

No information is held. Transport Scotland does not collect or maintain data on individual bus routes in Scotland, including whether they are supported by the Bus Service Operators Grant (BSOG) or Network Support Grant (NSG).

About FOI

The Scottish Government is committed to publishing all information released in response to Freedom of Information requests. View all FOI responses at https://www.gov.scot/foi-responses.