Transport in Glasgow

Glasgow has a large urban transportation system, mostly managed by Strathclyde Passenger Transport, the only Passenger Transport Executive in Scotland. SPT, is formed and financed out of the 7 councils in the Greater Glasgow area including Glasgow City Council. It has responsibility for local train services, the subway, certain ferries and buses.

The city has many bus services, almost all provided by private operators since bus deregulation in 1986, however SPT fund services where there is public need but no service. SPT also own and run the principal bus station in Glasgow, Buchanan Bus Station, which is a terminus point for many long distance intercity coach services as well as local journeys. A number of controversial ‘bus corridors’ have been invested in by Glasgow City Council focusing on main bus routes with real time information, and bus priority measures at a significant cost.

The Greater Glasgow Passenger Transport Executive (GGPTE), formerly the municipal transport operator, is as a result of bus deregulation now privately owned by First Group, who operate a vast bus network in Glasgow including its twelve core 24 hour 365 days a year services. Other large operators in Glasgow are Arriva and Stagecoach with a number of smaller operators catering to individual districts including First Stop Travel and many others.

Glasgow has the largest urban rail network in the UK outwith London, with rail services travelling to a large part of the West of Scotland. All trains running within Scotland are operated by First ScotRail, who own the franchise as determined by the Scottish Executive. This company is part of the First Group that runs the majority of bus services in the country.

There are two main railway terminals which provide train services throughout the United Kingdom: Central Station and Queen Street Station. Local trains within Glasgow are however run by First Scotrail to the specification and requirements of SPT, who provide rolling stock in the distincive SPT livery of Carmine and Cream. As well as the passenger trains SPT also run the only dedicated underground metro system in the UK outside of London; the Glasgow Subway (affectionately known as the ‘Clockwork Orange’ due to its single, circular line and the once garish orange livery of the trains). The Subway is best for visiting the West End, with its University, museums and galleries. A single ticket is £1, and a return £2, however after 0930 a day ticket can be purchased for £1.90.

A number of ferries used to link opposite sides of the Clyde in Glasgow. However these have steadily disappeared, mainly due to the construction of new bridges and tunnels including the Erskine Bridge, Kingston Bridge, and the Clyde Tunnel, which rendered them obsolete. The only remaining crossings are the Renfrew Ferry in Renfrewshire, and the Kilcreggan Ferry in Inverclyde, both run by SPT but outwith the city boundary. The paddle-steamer PS Waverley, the last sea going paddle-steamer in the world, still provides services from Glasgow City Centre, mainly catering to the pleasure cruise market. A regular service by Pride of the Clyde waterbuses link the City Centre with Braehead in Renfrewshire, some 30 minutes downstream.

The city also has extensive road connections to other cities. The main M8 motorway allows road transport to Edinburgh, as well as to connecting motorways that lead throughout Scotland and to England. It is currently proposed to extend the M74 motorway from its current end point at London Road in the East End of Glasgow through to the Centre of the City to provide the west of Glasgow, the M77, Renfrewshire and the airports a better connection with the South, and England. It has also been proposed to re-name the motorway as an extension of the M6 should this occur. The new link should also relieve traffic congestion on the M8 at the Kingston Bridge, however the road is currently subject to a number of environmental objections, as it has done since the first proposal in the 1970’s.

The city also has two international airports both outwith the boundary: Glasgow International Airport (GLA) in Paisley, Renfrewshire (13 km west of the city) and Glasgow Prestwick International Airport (PIK) in Prestwick, Ayrshire (46 km to the south-west).