ScotRail plans to cut 300 train services

ScotRail has published a plan to cut 300 rail services per day from its timetable.

The rail operator's "Fit for the Future" document sets out proposals for public transport as the country emerges from the Covid pandemic.

The company wants to drop from its pre-Covid number of 2,400 services a day to 2,100 in line with new travel patterns and overcapacity on some routes.

Railway unions have accused the company of using Covid as a cover for cuts.

ScotRail has been running just over 2,000 services per day while pandemic restrictions have been in place.

The operator said it had reviewed the timetable across the whole network to ensure the service meets the needs of customers and the Scottish government's aims as Scotland recovers from the pandemic.

It said: "We are proposing a new timetable operating around 2,100 services per weekday as the foundation to encourage a return to public transport following the pandemic. Most customers will find the number of calls at their station and the destinations served are similar to today.

"However, there are some areas where there is greater change, which is being done for several important reasons."

"Our analysis shows prior to the pandemic, on a number of routes across the country, significantly more seats were being provided than were required for the number of passengers travelling."

ScotRail covers all passenger services in Scotland except those run by other operators which cross the border.

Abellio currently runs the franchise but from spring next year the Scottish government will take over from the Dutch firm, using a "break clause" in the franchise contract to end it three years early.

ScotRail said that fewer than 5.5m passenger journey miles were completed on a typical weekday, which was just 23% of the available number of seats. That meant seats were empty for 77% of the distance travelled.

It added that a return to a pre-pandemic timetable would result in trains operating 26 million more vehicle miles each year for little customer benefit.

As well as increased emissions, that would increase ScotRail costs to the taxpayer by £30m to £40m each year, it said.

ScotRail also said the new timetable would focus on improved punctuality and reliability of services.

A consultation on the new timetable will open on Friday, lasting for two months, but four railway unions have already joined forces to condemn the proposals.

Aslef, RMT, TSSA and Unite said that many of the proposals in the consultation appeared similar to those detailed in a controversial blueprint that ScotRail commissioned from rail expert Iain Docherty.

They said the plans to cut rail services were being put to the public just a week after a major UN scientific report on climate change was described as "a Code Red for humanity".

ScotRail's consultation will close days before world leaders arrive in Glasgow to discuss a global response to the climate crisis at the COP26 summit which will include a full day devoted to transport discussions.

In a joint statement the unions said: "It is incredible that in the year that the world comes to Scotland to debate the very future of our planet that ScotRail is proposing cuts to rail services in a transparent attempt to use the pandemic as cover for cuts.

"These plans would not only cull jobs, they would hit the most vulnerable hardest including elderly and disabled people. All the while diverting many passengers back onto the roads and increasing pollution, congestion and greenhouse gases.

"It is exactly this type of short-term thinking that has contributed to the climate crisis."

Alex Hynes, the managing director of Scotland's Railway (Network Rail) said: "The pandemic has changed how people travel across all of Scotland so our services will reflect these varied travel patterns and deliver timetables that are reliable, have enough capacity to meet pre-Covid levels of demand, and are sustainable.

"We are consulting on the timetable changes being proposed and we would welcome the views of our customers."

David Simpson, ScotRail's operations director, said the cost of running the railway after the impact of Covid meant it was essential to offer value for money as well as meeting the changing needs of customers.

"That might mean offering a different service on different days of the week or different times of year as passenger demand varies across the week or through the year, " he said. "But by doing so, we can ensure Scotland's railway remains sustainable into the future."

Transport Minister Graeme Dey said it was essential that businesses ensured they were "fit for the future".

"Rail is no different and that is why it is essential ScotRail review changes in travel patterns across Scotland so that timetables best meet demand," he said.

"This consultation exercise offers a real opportunity for customers and businesses to help shape a reliable and responsive timetable change from May 2022.