More than half of under-22s in Scotland are missing out on free bus travel amid claims it is too difficult to apply.
The SNP / Green government introduced a bus pass for young people and children aged between 5 and 21 which began on January 31 this year. However only 42 per cent have applied for one.
Scottish Labour has accused the government of “congratulating themselves on a job half done” saying the summer would have been a “perfect time for young people to make use of their pass”.
According to the latest statistics there are 986,600 eligible for the pass with just 413,909 applying six months after it was launched.
Scottish Labour Transport spokesperson Neil Bibby said: “People are still facing too many barriers applying and the hard truth is in huge parts of Scotland there simply aren’t enough buses for the pass to be of much use.”
Uptake was highest in the Inverclyde council area with 77 per cent applying for the pass, while the Western Isles saw 74 per cent take advantage of free travel.
While some areas have high registration Clackmannanshire has an uptake of 23 per cent, with neighbouring Falkirk seeing 24 per cent apply for the pass.
Of the 107,000 eligible in Glasgow just 45,225 people have been issued with a pass, while 51,068 of 84,800 took up the opportunity in Edinburgh.
Bibby added: “While the SNP and the Greens are busy congratulating themselves on a job half done, most young people still don’t have their pass.
“The holidays would’ve been the perfect time for young people to make use of their pass. It’s good to see uptake climbing, but this is pitiful progress half a year into this flagship scheme.
“Labour-run Inverclyde Council has led the way streamlining the application process and the Scottish Government must support other areas to follow suit so we can end the postcode lottery.
“It is time for the SNP-Green government to drop the spin and focus on delivering on this years-old promise so no more children and young people miss out. If this was an exam, the SNP would have failed it.”
A Transport Scotland spokesperson said: “ We are determined to ensure all children and young people who benefit most from free bus travel don’t miss out.
“Since January, well over 400,000 young people have joined the scheme and over 15 million journeys have been made.
“There are a number of different ways to apply, including online or directly with councils who can also coordinate through schools.
“The Minister for Transport recently wrote to all Local Authorities asking them to provide assurance that they have put in place suitable processes to allow children, young people and parents/guardians to apply offline through local council services, and to identify whether additional support is required to achieve this.
“In February, we launched the ‘Transport Scot Pass Collect’ app which lets 16-21s collect free bus travel onto their existing NEC or Young Scot NEC, without having to apply for a replacement.”
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