A THIRD term in power for the SNP will see the party’s long-promised policy of slashing air passenger duty finally come to pass. 

The Nationalists’ manifesto vows to begin halving APD as soon as tax powers are devolved in April 2018, with a full 50 per cent reduction achieved by the end of the next parliament. 

Their ultimate ambition – abolishing APD entirely – will be done “when resources allow”. 

The party has spearheaded the drive to get rid of the levy, which raises anything from £13 to £146 per passenger for the UK Treasury depending on the distance of the flight and the 
class of seat.

It is estimated that the tax, one of the highest of its kind in the world, now costs the Scottish economy around £200 million a year in lost tourist revenue.

The SNP manifesto insists that the duty “hampers Scotland’s ability to secure new direct international routes and maintain existing ones”.

Scrapping the tax is not without controversy, however.

Besides the revenue lost to the Treasury – an estimated £230m a year – there have been warnings that cheaper flights north of the Border will disadvantage regional English airports, while environmentalists argue moves to make high-polluting air travel even more affordable at a time of record passenger numbers and low oil prices is at odds with climate targets.

Both the LibDems and the Greens want to retain APD, with the Greens vowing instead to create an airline tax “to represent the industry’s environmental cost”. 

Rail is at the core of most of the parties’ transport proposals, with the SNP, Labour and the Greens all outlining their intention to have a public sector bidder on the table the next time the ScotRail franchise is up for grabs – although that will not be until 2022 at the earliest.

For the Greens, public ownership should be the “default option”. It comes after disquiet among the trade unions and some rail campaigners that the East Coast franchise was handed back to the private sector, as well as questions as to why a Dutch public sector operator could bid for a Scottish rail franchise when a home-grown one could not. 

Another recurring transport theme is the introduction of national smartcards and the protection of the bus pass for over-60s. 

None of the parties advocate any shake-up of the concessionary bus scheme beyond expanding eligibility.

Labour wants to bring veterans and apprentices into the fold; the Greens, unpaid carers on benefits; and the Conservatives want it to include community transport services run by the voluntary sector.

Labour promises a “one-size-fits-all” national smartcard integrating all forms of public transport from a ferry to Orkney to the Glasgow Subway. 

The idea is not new – in 2012, the Scottish Government announced the creation of a ‘Saltire card’, but the scheme is yet to be fully delivered. The fragmented nature of Scotland’s public transport system makes it difficult to bring all operators on board, while some industry experts baulk at the notion of a ‘Scottish Oyster card’ at a time when London is already moving beyond Oyster to contactless payment. Why bother creating a national smartcard if you can enable contactless payment instead and have travellers simply “tap in” using their own debit or credit cards. 

The LibDems favour the latter, saying they would introduce contactless payment on ScotRail and public buses for “automatic access to lowest fares”.

The success of the Borders Railway, meanwhile, has inspired plans for potential extensions and new routes. The SNP will “conduct a feasibility study” to examine extending the new Borders line further south to Hawick and Carlisle, as well as considering an extension of the Stirling-Alloa rail line to Dunfermline by upgrading the existing Longannet freight line for passenger services.

The Tories want to restore Reston and East Linton stations, while the Greens would seek to re-open the Methil and Leven routes and dual the Highland line. 

Increased walking and cycling is on the agenda for most parties, though proposals vary in ambition. For the Greens, it means allocating a minimum of 10 per cent of the annual transport budget – £220m – to active travel, compared to less than two per cent now. 

The Conservatives would put an extra £5m towards walking and cycling, Labour promises “extra investment”, while the 
Lib Dems simply want “more dedicated and segregated cycle lanes” – but do not specify a spending quota.

The SNP is “determined to meet our vision of 10 per cent of everyday journeys being made by bike by 2020”, although with rates currently hovering barely above one per cent there is a long way to go in less than four years. 

There are a handful of unique propositions setting the parties apart. Labour is the only party promising to ensure CalMac continues to be operated publicly.

It is also the only party to even mention Glasgow Crossrail – the so-called “missing link” in the city’s infrastructure – but the tone is a more muted wish to “see progress” compared to the fanfare with which former leader Jim Murphy last year committed to delivering the scheme once in power.

Labour and the Greens both promise re-regulation of Scotland’s bus industry, but the Greens stand alone in committing to a presumed liability law to protect vulnerable road users.

Although all the parties promise to reduce fares on Orkney and Shetland ferry services, only the LibDems vow to halve them.

There are also some notable absences in the manifestos, however. 

No mention anywhere of plans to bring in drug-driving testing along the lines already done in England, despite the initiative’s apparent success, nor any word on a Glasgow Airport rail link.