Privacy Notice

Summary

The West Lothian Bus Alliance and SYSTRA are carrying out a study to consider improvements to transport in the West Lothian area. The West Lothian Bus Alliance is formed of: West Lothian Council; SEStran (South East of Scotland Transport Partnership); Bus Users UK; and some of the main bus operators in the area.

The study will largely consider measures which aim to improve bus journey times, reduce the negative impacts of congestion on bus services, and encourage bus use. However, it will also look at how a wider package of transport measures, such as active travel, can support these aims for bus travel.

A key part of the study is drawing on the expert voices and members of the public in the West Lothian area, seeking to align the needs and responsibilities of all.

The initial stage of engagement, titled ‘Case for Change’, will focus on how people currently travel in and around West Lothian now, and what they think the transport challenges in the West Lothian area are and how they can be addressed.

SYSTRA are undertaking a multi-method engagement approach, comprising:

Interviews; and
An online survey.

The research will help inform ongoing options appraisal for improving transport in West Lothian.

This notice

SYSTRA have been commissioned by West Lothian Council, on behalf of the West Lothian Bus Alliance, to undertake this study;
SYSTRA, West Lothian Council and the West Lothian Bus Alliance are committed to making sure that we tell you about the ways in which we use your personal information and that we have the right controls in place to make sure it is used responsibly and kept safe from inappropriate access, theft, or misuse.
We are providing you with this notice so you know what data we are collecting from you as part of this research study; what we are going to do with it; and your rights over our use of your personal data.

Your personal data

Personal data relates to a living individual who can be identified from that data. Identification can be by the information alone or in conjunction with any other information. The processing of personal data is governed by the UK General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), and associated legislation including but not limited to the Data Protection Act 2018.

Who are we?

West Lothian Council and SYSTRA are Joint Data Controller. This means West Lothian Council and SYSTRA have decided how your personal data is processed and for what purposes.
SYSTRA is responsible for collecting and processing your personal data. SYSTRA are Cyber Essentials accredited.

What information is being processed?

The research has two different approaches:

Interviews; and
An online survey.

West Lothian Council or SYSTRA will have invited you to participate in interviews via direct email. In this email, you will have been asked to opt-in to taking part in engagement for the overall West Lothian Bus Partnership study through completion of an online form. If you decide to opt-in, this form will have asked you to confirm your email address and, optionally, telephone number. You may have also been invited to respond to the online survey via a direct email from the West Lothian Council or SYSTRA.

In both of these instances, your contact details were provided to SYSTRA or West Lothian Council with your consent, or were publicly available online. This may include your name, the organisation you represent and your email address.

Additionally, you may have been invited to take part in the online survey via promotion of the survey link on social media.

The interviews and online survey will ask questions on the transport challenges in the West Lothian area and how they can be addressed. Additionally, if you are responding on behalf of an organisation, the survey will ask questions on:

your organisation type;
your organisation name;
your email address and role.

This information will be used to help us understand any differences in opinions between different types of organisations and to ensure responses are unique.

If you are responding to the online survey as an individual, the survey will ask you questions on:

whether or not you live in the area;
which area of West Lothian you live in;
your current travel behaviour; and
the gender with which you identify.

The survey will also ask for your age, to ensure we are only collecting data from those aged 16 and older.

Any contact details provided or obtained for this research will not be provided to any other third party, and will be presented in an anonymised form in its reporting.

How is it collected?

The opt-in survey form and online survey is being collected using SNAP Survey software. SNAP Survey is a secure software survey platform used for data collection and analysis which has the highest standards of data security achieving the ISO27001 accreditation.

The interviews will be undertaken using MS Teams or Zoom.

Why is it being collected?

Our lawful basis for processing under GDPR is:

GDPR Article 6(1)(e): the processing is necessary for the performance of its official tasks carried out in the public interest, consistent with the power to advance wellbeing, Local Government in Scotland Act (2003).

We also rely on your Consent to hold your personal data. You may withdraw your consent at any time.

How will it be used?

SYSTRA, West Lothian Council and the West Lothian Bus Alliance comply with their obligations under the UK GDPR by: keeping personal data up to date; by storing and destroying it securely; by not collecting or retaining excessive amounts of data; by protecting personal data from loss, misuse, unauthorised access and disclosure and by ensuring that appropriate technical measures are in place to protect personal data.
All personal data held as part of this project is encrypted with a secure password and access restricted to only those working on the project.
Your data will be analysed with all other participant data. SYSTRA will report the findings of the study to the West Lothian Bus Alliance. No individual identifiable information will be included during reporting.

Who will it be shared with?

Data will be collected and stored in the United Kingdom.
SYSTRA will share findings from this engagement with the West Lothian Bus Alliance at the end of the research, and no other third party. This will not contain any personal contact information alongside views shared.

How long do we keep your personal data?

We keep your personal data for no longer than reasonably necessary. Your data will be kept for the duration of the project. After this, all personal data will be destroyed.

Your rights and personal data

You have the following rights with respect to your personal data:

The right to request a copy of your personal data which SYSTRA holds about you;
The right to request that SYSTRA corrects any personal data if it is found to be inaccurate or out of date;
The right to request your personal data is erased where it is no longer necessary for SYSTRA to retain such data;
The right to withdraw your consent to the processing at any time;
The right, where there is a dispute in relation to the accuracy or processing of your personal data, to request a restriction is placed on further processing;
The right to object to the processing of personal data; and
The right to lodge a complaint with the Information Commissioners Office.

Contact Details

If you would like:

Any more information about the research study, or our use of your data;
To request to see the personal data held on you;
To request to withdraw your personal data; or
To exercise any other of the rights listed above:

Please contact the SYSTRA project manager, Claire Mackay, cmackay@systra.com

Should you wish to find out more about SYSTRA’s data protection processes or contact their Data
Protection Officer, please contact SYSTRA’s UK Compliance Team at UK_compliance@systra.com.

If you have any concerns or questions about data protection or your rights you can also contact the Information Commissioners Office on 0303 123 1113 or via email https://ico.org.uk/global/contact-us/email or at the Information Commissioner’s Office, Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire, SK9 5AF.