What Scotland’s early hustings tell us about the future of active travel ahead of the election

As Scotland's official pre-election period begins, manifestos are starting to emerge and candidates are being announced, I've been reflecting on several recent hustings events I’ve attended to consider what they reveal about how political parties might approach active travel ahead of the election on 7 May. 

Climate and Nature Hustings 

The first hustings of the year was ‘The Joint Climate and Nature Hustings’, held on the 24 February at Augustine United Church in Edinburgh, organised by Stop Climate Chaos Scotland and Environment LINK Scotland. As Cycling UK is a partner organisation of SCCS, it was great to see a full hall and strong online attendance. You can check out the SCCS manifesto. 

While many of the questions focused—unsurprisingly—on environmental and biodiversity issues, there were important contributions highlighting the links between active travel, public health and the environment. 

Active travel can play a key role in improving nature and biodiversity in towns and cities, and this is increasingly being recognised by local authorities across Scotland. Projects are not only enabling people to walk, wheel, and cycle more easily, but are also being used to enhance local biodiversity and build resilience to climate change. In some cases, climate adaptation measures—such as urban drainage projects—are being designed in ways that also improve active travel infrastructure. 

Walking Hustings 

On 4 March, we attended the Walking Hustings hosted by Walking Scotland. This event provided a more direct focus on active travel. Representatives from the SNP, Labour, Conservatives, Reform, Liberal Democrats, and Greens were all in attendance, offering early indications of what may appear in party manifestos. 

Encouragingly, there was broad agreement across parties on the importance of active travel in Scotland. While there were some exceptions, most candidates made efforts to recognise the value of cycling and walking. In particular, there were indications that several parties will support the target of allocating 10% of the transport budget to active travel. We’re eagerly awaiting manifestos to see whether these popular policies make it in-front of voters.  

As the cost-of-living crisis continues, the discussion also highlighted the cost-effectiveness of active travel investment and the need for sustained, multi-year funding in Scotland. Beyond the direct transport benefits, candidates acknowledged the wider societal gains active travel provides, including improvements to public health, stronger community connections, and increased social cohesion. 

For context, spending 10% of the transport budget on active travel projects is considered the minimum amount necessary to transform our streets so that everyone feels able to walk, cycle or wheel and that we have world-leading infrastructure (IPPR Report). Scotland currently spends around 5% of its transport budget on active travel and this figure has been reduced in recent years and now also includes elements of public transport, further diluting its impact. That’s why it’s important to write to your candidates ahead of 7 May. 

If you’d like to email your candidates and tell them how important active travel is to you, you can do so here: Speak to your candidates 

Spokes and Cycling UK - Edinburgh Hustings 

Spokes' Edinburgh Hustings also offered some key insights into party thinking on active travel. Spokes’ volunteers came up with an excellent alternative format which was warmly received by the candidates and the evening was really well attended despite fairly atrocious weather on the night - watch a clip from the event from the comfort of your home. 

Candidates spoke passionately about the importance of active travel for Edinburgh, and Scotland more generally. While the hustings did focus on some Edinburgh-specific issues (e.g. TRO’s and workplace parking levies), it also brought up some interesting national discussion; especially regarding the difference between goals and delivery, and the push and pull between local, regional and national policy-making in a tight economy. 

Upcoming hustings

Looking ahead, preparations are well underway for two further hustings events.  

Online Active Travel Hustings - 14 Apr

The first is our national online hustings on 14 April, delivered in partnership with Women on Wheels and the Walk, Wheel, Cycle Trust. This event will focus particularly on women's experiences and how to remove barriers for women and girls who wish to cycle for everyday journeys. Sign up and submit a question to the candidates. 

GoBike Hustings – Glasgow, 28 April 

Our final hustings event before 7 May will take place in Glasgow on 28 April, in collaboration with Go Bike, Aye Bike and Glasgow Eco Trust. This will provide another opportunity for the public to engage directly with candidates and raise key questions for parties on active travel. See Go Bike’s page for more information on the event. 

P.S. After the election… 

Don’t forget, once the dust has settled from the election there is still a great opportunity to show how much cycling matters to you and your community by joining Pedal on Parliament on 30th May in Edinburgh. We’ll see you there!