Scotways is one of the 68 organisations from across Scotland that have come together to urge all political parties to
enable more people to walk, wheel, or cycle, ahead of the 2026 Holyrood election.
The ‘Joint Active Travel Manifesto for 2026’ calls for parties to commit to multi-year
budgets, link public transport, and improve road safety, in order to build on ongoing success
and bring the benefits of walking/wheeling and cycling to more people.
From helping to reduce Scotland’s carbon emissions to improving public health and
supporting local economies, the manifesto highlights some of the many benefits that active
travel brings, calling on parties to pledge to support five key commitments:
- Investment: provide long term investment to transform our local high streets and
communities, committing at least 10% of the transport budget to active travel funding. - Long-term commitment: Multi-year budgets to accelerate delivery of national
strategies on walking/wheeling and cycling, offer better value for money, and give
more people access to active travel, regardless of income and background. - Infrastructure: Transform our communities, enabling anyone, especially younger
people, to travel more safely on foot, by wheeling, or by bike. Including through well
maintained, accessible networks of walking or cycling routes and reorganised street
space, creating better, greener local places. - Link active and public transport: Integrate walking and cycling infrastructure with
public transport in rural areas, especially, providing alternatives to the car. Reducing
congestion for all and effortlessly linking longer journeys. - Safety: Reduce road danger by lowering traffic speeds in our communities, by taking
dangerous drivers off the road and by creating more accessible streets for all:
implementing the pavement parking ban, reinforcing the new Highway Code and
making welcoming spaces everyone can use and enjoy.
The full joint manifesto for active travel, with a list of all signatories, is available here.
