Queen Margaret University travel plan

Travel Plan 2010 – 11

The green travel plan at the university has proved to be a great success in improving the efficiency of travel to and from the campus.

This has been achieved by holding numerous meetings with local authorities and public transport providers to enhance the transport links to the campus. Continued relationships are being maintained with First, Scotrail and Lothian Buses, this ensures the best possible services for students and staff. Scotrail are introducing a new train service as of the 23rd of May 2011, this additional service from Dunbar to Edinburgh stops at Musselburgh rail station at 17:22 allowing for more flexibility in journey planning.

Lothian Buses have also increased the frequency of their number 15 service to 4 per hour during the evening peak period. Accessibility of these services has been improved due to the availability of ticket purchasing on campus. Lothian Buses continue to work with the university to develop a clear bus information leaflet to identify all available services to staff and students.

The survey has also identified a demand for daily parking tickets, and these are now available onsite for staff and students parking on campus. The university website is also regularly reviewed and updated to provide updated travel information.


Travel Survey 2011

To understand the existing travel behaviour and constraints and plan for the future, a simple and effective questionnaire survey was undertaken. The 2011 Travel Survey ran between 28th February and 1st April 2011. The 27 questions were specifically targeted to assess:

• Current travel characteristics of staff and students at QMU


• Improvements to public transport at QMU


• Improvements to QMU Travel Plan

The survey received 388 responses from staff and students, and the results indicate how the travel options to the campus have improved significantly year by year. The survey indicated that the majority of students and staff use sustainable modes such as the bus or traina as well as cycling and walking to travel to and from the campus, with less than one quarter driving.

The survey also reflects how the majority of staff and students feel the bus services at QMU are average or above; this reflects the ongoing work QMU have undertaken with local bus service providers. QMU continually strives for further bus service improvements.


Next Steps

For future development the main concerns expressed by staff and students will be addressed these are:

• Frequency of train services


• Cost of parking permits


• Frequency and capacity on bus services, and


• Cyclist locker and changing facilities

The main action we will undertake to meet these concerns is to advertise what facilities are actually on offer at the university. Participants of the survey expressed the need for more cycle lockers. However not all of the available cycle lockers were used last year, and therefore better promotion of this service will be made. The university does have the facilities to meet the needs of cyclists, and this will also be advertised.

To answer any questions regarding sustainable transport, representatives from bus, train, City Car Club and lift share will be on hand during induction week to provide information regarding the services they can offer. Access to the university by walking is to be improved by trying to improve the solar powered lighting with the possible implementation of hard-wired lighting along the access path to Newcraighall.

It is very important to continue to improve the services to the university and understand the needs of the staff and students at the campus, therefore please find time to complete the annual Travel Survey to have your say.


A1 Development

The development of a full junction on the A1 in the next year will provide new opportunities to develop further transport links to the campus, including possible additional bus services stopping at the university.