HiTrans partnership means passengers can book NorthLink Ferries using Go-Hi travel app
Ferry services between Caithness and Orkney will be able to be booked alongside other public transport options thanks to a new deal.
The Highlands and Islands Transport Partnership, HiTrans, has announced that NorthLink Ferries are now available via its Go-Hi travel app.
The app allows users to book integrated public transport options including buses, trains, flights, taxis, and car and bike hire.
NorthLink operates between Scrabster in Caithness and Stromness in Orkney, as well as on routes to Shetland from Aberdeen.
The app will also allow passengers on the Aberdeen ferry to book a cabin for overnight journeys in a breakthrough for a Mobility as a Service (Maas) application.
HiTrans director Ranald Robertson said: “We are delighted to welcome NorthLink as one of our valued partners, and for Go-Hi to be the first MaaS platform in the UK that includes a fully integrated ferry offering. NorthLink provides a lifeline service to Orkney and Shetland, so making it more straightforward to link their services with others via Go-Hi will help to improve access to mobility in this rural area.”
Go-Hi was launched in June last year having been supported by the Scottish Government’s MaaS Investment Fund. The app offers residents, visitors and business travellers in the Highlands and Islands improved access to a wide range of public transport and travel services in one place.
Scotland's transport minister Jenny Gilruth said: “We want to help Scotland to become an international leader in Smart Mobility, and our MaaS Investment Fund projects are helping to unlock this potential for innovation.
"Go-Hi aims to tackle mobility challenges for communities throughout rural Scotland, so it’s great to see NorthLink’s ferry services – a vital lifeline for island residents, and link for tourism and local businesses in the Northern Isles – now being made available on the Go-Hi app.
“MaaS has the potential to transform the way we use transport by making public and shared transport options like bus and train as desirable as using our car, all of which helps to create a healthier, more sustainable Scotland. It’s only through testing and widespread use that we can see how effective this technology is, so I’d encourage everyone to download the Go-Hi app and try it out.”
Users can plan, book and pay for their door-to-door, multimodal journeys securely by debit card, credit card or PayPal in a single transaction using their smartphone or desktop device. Go-Hi offers instant access to book buses, trains, ferries, taxis, car clubs, car hire, bike hire, flights, hotels, and demand responsive travel (DRT) using a single app.
Serco-operated NorthLink joins the range of transport and accommodation providers already available via Go-Hi, including ScotRail, Stagecoach Bus, Brompton Bike Hire, Bewegen, Enterprise Car Club and Car Hire, West Coast Motors, Inverness Taxis and Loganair.
More new services are planned for Go-Hi in the coming weeks with the next planned integrations being Scottish Citylink’s coach network and HiTrans’ new DRT service Moove Flexi, which offers digital booking of on-demand services across the Highlands and Islands.
Jim Dow, commercial director at Serco NorthLink Ferries, added: “We aim to ensure that our ferry services are accessible to as many people as possible, and so we’re delighted to announce our new partnership with HiTrans. By joining the Go-Hi app, we are giving our customers the option to book their ferry journeys alongside a range of additional transport and travel services.
"It will make travelling to Orkney and Shetland from the Scottish mainland more convenient than ever before, as customers can now easily access information about travel links to and from our ports.”
Go-Hi is funded by the Scottish Government’s MaaS Investment Fund. The MaaS Investment Fund was established to test the concept of MaaS in Scotland. The pioneering Go-Hi project aims to deliver on the Scottish Government’s aspirations of lowering carbon emissions, improving health, and growing digital and innovation within Scotland by developing digital solutions to encourage and enable modal shift to public transport and active travel alternatives.