Measuring Connectivity Across Scotland: Which Settlements Meet the Standard?

Why connectivity matters

For many people, public transport is a critical lifeline, providing them with access to jobs, education and services. While there is agreement that connectivity is important, how can this be measured? SESTran Regional Bus Strategy sets out a connectivity metric that can be used to explore how well Scotland’s settlements are connected by measuring how many other settlements are reachable by public transport.

How we measured connectivity

Utilising TRACC, this analysis looked at accessibility for three criteria based on the SESTran guidance. This meant that based on the population of a settlement different minimum direct public transport connections were necessary, with larger settlements needing higher service frequency standards. Access was analysed against:

Part – An available trip between 6am-10pm

Working – An available trip between 7am-9am

Full – An available trip every hour between 7am-7pm

These journeys were required to be a maximum of 60 minutes with a maximum 800m walk from/to public transport stops. In general, each settlement had to access the next largest settlement type (see 'About this analysis' for more details).

What did our analysis show?

The results highlight a clear pattern: while some areas benefit from strong, interconnected networks, others fall short, not always due to poor provision, but often because of geography itself.

Overall only 29% of the 636 settlements met all three of the criteria. Rural hamlets recorded the highest pass rate at 54%, though this is helped by this settlement type only having to meet the Part criteria. 36% of rural small villages passed, although these were not required to pass the Full criteria. Around 26% of rural villages, small towns and urban settlements passed all three criteria. This lower pass rate highlights the higher requirements in urban areas.

The impact of distance to other settlements is emphasised when the results of this analysis are mapped. This shows a band of passing settlements near Glasgow and Edinburgh, as well as along the east coastline of Scotland where there is a higher number of settlements.

Limitation of the analysis

It is important to note the limitations of this analysis:

• DRT services were not included, which will impact rural areas in particular.

• Journeys were only tested in one direction and did not guarantee that a return journey is viable.

• Settlement centroids were used, which do not always align with key transport hubs.

• Only reflects a single day (Tuesday), and does not capture weekend variation.

As highlighted, local knowledge and an understanding of geographic constraints are essential when assessing connectivity. These factors should be considered alongside the analysis to inform meaningful improvements to the public transport network.

Key Takeaways

Connectivity varies significantly across Scotland, with only 29% of settlements meeting all three criteria, showing clear differences in access depending on location and settlement type. Geography plays a major role, as some areas fail not due to poor public transport provision but because of their distance from other settlements and the wider network structure. Higher service expectations are also harder to meet, particularly in urban areas where stricter criteria apply. Importantly, connectivity is more nuanced than a simple pass/fail measure, with some settlements falling short of the criteria while still maintaining strong links to multiple destinations. Overall, data-led analysis should support, not replace, local knowledge, ensuring that results are interpreted in the context of real-world constraints and opportunities.