The British city that is set to get its iconic river bus back

In days gone by, Glasgow’s Clyde river bustled with boats ferrying passengers from one side of the city to the other. Going all the way back in the 1850s, 11 different ferries have run from Finnieston, Govan, Partick, Whiteinch, Erskine and Renfrew.

If you thought this was ancient history, think again. The Renfrew Ferry, linking the town to Yoker on the north bank of the Clyde, was still in operation until last year, but shuttered after a new Renfrew Bridge opened in May 2025.

But now, thanks to plans floated by Glasgow City Council, its waterways could once again be teaming with buoyant buses.

As part of a new project to make the Clyde’s banks more accessible and pedestrian-friendly, both sides of the river between Glasgow Bridge and Victoria Bridge are getting an upgrade. Plans for the revamp include creating new public spaces for exercise, pop-up activities and pavilions and additional lighting to make travelling along the water’s edge at night safer.

Called the Custom House Quay & Carlton Place project, it has triggered local councillors to raise the prospect of bringing river travel back as part of the regeneration.

SNP councillor Graham Campbell said at an economy, housing, transport and regeneration city policy committee meeting: ‘I'm very much a champion of getting us back to having a river bus, having river travel and having the river as a transit mechanism and people being able to access it again.’ He asked if developers would consider reviving the floating buses as part of the Custom House plans. 

Another official at the meeting said that an investigation into using pontoons on the waterfront had been approved, which would bring the prospect of a new river transport network in Glasgow one step closer.

Did you see that Buchanan Bus Station is getting a game-changing revamp?

Plus: the world’s best attraction is here in Scotland, according to TripAdvisor – rated better than the Empire State Building and Eiffel Tower.