Too many families are struggling to visit their lived ones in hospital, new figures suggest.

Limited public transport options mean the problem is particularly acute over the festive period.

But many struggle to visit their local NHS hospital by bus or train all year round, according to official surveys.

The increased trend for them to be built out of town centres can mean a long journey for those without a car.

And people in small towns and remote rural communities face the biggest battle.

The figures come from the Transport Scotland quango and show low levels of satisfaction with public transport to hospitals, with only 60 per cent of those surveyed agreeing that access is convenient and only only 56% of over 60s saying they were satisfied with the service.

That figure dropped to 49% of those in small towns and 46% in rural communities.

The figures were obtained by Scottish Labour's shadow infrastructure secretary Mary Fee, who said: "Spending any time in hospital can be lonely but during the Christmas and New Year holidays it's even more important that patients have their family visit as often as possible.

"For many of our most vulnerable Scots, that means relying on public transport."

Labour are calling on the SNP to back their Bus Regulation (Scotland) Bill, which they say would allow less profitable routes - which are often vital to the communities they serve - to be bundled with profitable routes to ensure both are protected.

Ms Fee said "It is clear that people from our poorest communities, without access to a car, will face difficulty visiting family members in hospital during the Christmas and New Year holidays.

"This winter should be the last one where the SNP preside over a postcode lottery on public transport."

A Scottish Government spokesman said: "We are currently considering the proposal for a bill and we will give our response in due course.

"The present system combines a competitive market with substantial public support and a range of powers for local transport authorities to intervene to secure socially desirable services where these are not being provided commercially.

"Surveys show high levels of user satisfaction overall. However, we are happy to consider constructive proposals for change. That is why we will look at the costs and benefits of the specific proposals carefully in the course of our continuing work with the Bus Stakeholder Group."