ScotRail passengers face double strike disruption

ScotRail passengers faced more UK-wide strike disruption on Saturday - with further action being warned if separate pay talks break down.

RMT members are staging their latest walkout in a dispute with Network Rail over pay, jobs and conditions.

It comes as talks go on between the union and ScotRail after the RMT rejected a 5% pay rise.

Only 20% of ScotRail services will run on Saturday between 07:30 and 18:30 in the central belt, Borders and Fife.

No trains will run elsewhere on the ScotRail network.

Cross-border services will also be affected, with no trains running on the Avanti West Coast line and LNER scrapping services to and from Edinburgh.

Andrew Haines, Network Rail's chief executive, said: "Despite our best efforts to compromise and find a breakthrough in talks, rail unions remain intent on continuing and co-ordinating their strike action.

"This serves only to ensure our staff forgo even more of their pay unnecessarily, as well as causing even more disruption for our passengers and further damaging the railway's recovery from the pandemic."

A march in support of striking workers made its way through Glasgow to the city's Central rail station on Saturday afternoon.

The RMT/Network Rail dispute does not involve ScotRail staff, but the operator relies on Network Rail workers to operate signal boxes and maintain the track.

However, ScotRail workers could stage their own 24-hour strike on 10 October if ongoing talks with the RMT do not bring about an agreement.

The union has described the 5% pay offer from ScotRail as an effective wage cut for its members because of the soaring rate of inflation.

Gordon Martin, the RMT's regional organiser for Scotland, told the BBC's Good Morning Scotland programme on Friday that he expected 40,000 members to join Saturday's strike action.

He said: "This is a significant number of workers. While there are pay freezes being imposed on them, the bosses and the bankers are getting income tax reductions and bonuses.

"So a bit of fairness in society is required here."

RMT general secretary Mick Lynch previously said ScotRail knew the 5% offer was not good enough and did not take into account the escalating cost of living crisis.

He added: "Our members refuse to be made poorer and will exercise their industrial strength to let ScotRail know that they will not rest until they are paid what they deserve."

ScotRail's operations director David Simpson urged passengers to check the operator's website before making Saturday travel plans.

He told Good Morning Scotland: "We will be operating just under 400 services - that's about a fifth of our normal service on a Saturday.

"Those services will be mainly through the central belt around Glasgow, down towards the Borders and out to Cowdenbeath and Fife but over a very limited time.

"So with many fewer services than usual running less frequently than usual, the advice is very much, if you're going to travel check the journey in advance and plan ahead."