The value of bus and coach

Buses and coaches perform many vital roles across society, from providing essential transport to cleaning up the air we all breathe. Below are the top 5 facts each about bus and coach.

Bus

Pre-Covid 19 bus was the most-used form of public transport, with bus journeys making up 60% of all public transport journeys.

A fully loaded double decker bus can take 75 cars off the road, which can ease congestion and improve air quality.

Bus commuters added an impressive £64 billion to the economy each year pre-Covid.

Before the pandemic on average around 50 bus trips were made per person per year.

Pre-Covid a huge 5 million trips were made by bus each day, which included: 

    • 3 million journeys for leisure purposes
    • 1 million people used the bus to get to school/college
    • 4 million people made journeys by bus to get to the shops
    • 2 million people per day travelled to work by bus in 2019

For a full list of facts and figures about the bus industry, click here.

You can click here to read a selection of facts, figures and explanations collated by CPT Scotland to challenge misleading narratives regarding the bus industry in Scotland. The purpose of this document is to provide evidence-based context to inform discussions on the future of the bus sector.

Coach

Just one coach-load of people can keep up to 50 cars off the roads, which can contribute to solving the problems of congestion and air pollution.

Pre-pandemic British people made an estimated 500 million passenger journeys by coach in the UK each year.

In 2019 there were a huge 23 million visits to tourist attractions and locations by coach, which contributed an impressive £14 billion to the UK economy.

Coaches will continue to play an important role in the road to Net Zero. 56% of carbon dioxide emissions come from cars & taxis, just 3% come from buses & coaches.

Coaches provide vital and safe transport, getting around 600,000 children to school each day.

For a full list of facts and figures about the coach industry, click here.