Thursday 18 February 2010
ScotRail today announced that it intends to run the vast majority of services when the RMT trade union strikes on Saturday, February 20.
The aim is to provide 100% of services on many routes – including Edinburgh-Glasgow Queen Street and all services in Strathclyde, except Motherwell-Cumbernauld.
ScotRail’s intention is to run at least nine out of 10 trains across Scotland.
Steve Montgomery, managing director of ScotRail, said: “It is business as usual for Scotland’s railway. Our contingency plans are such that almost all our customers will not notice there is a strike.”
He added: “However, we have had to revise some services because of the RMT’s bid to cause as much inconvenience as possible to our customers.
“Tough choices have had to be taken to ensure that as many people as possible are unaffected on the day.”
A number of rural services will be replaced by buses.
Where changes have been made, services will be replaced with buses. A small number of services have been cancelled.
The RMT has also voted to strike on Monday March 1 and Saturday March 13 – the day of the Scotland v England RBS 6 Nations game at Murrayfield.
ScotRail is extremely disappointed by the RMT strikes over having ticket examiners rather than conductors as the second person on services on the new £300m line between Glasgow and Edinburgh via Airdrie and Bathgate.
Mr Montgomery said: “The line creates 130 new jobs and the trains will be no different from those which have operated in Strathclyde for 25 years.
“It appears the RMT is now saying these trains are unsafe. But for more than two decades they have carried 56% of passengers and they are also no different from those on the Larkhall branch line which reopened four years ago without objection from the RMT.”
Summary of services that will run normally:
• Edinburgh – Glasgow via Falkirk High
• Strathclyde services, except Motherwell – Cumbernauld
• Edinburgh and Glasgow – Aberdeen and Inverness
• Aberdeen – Inverness
• Glasgow – Edinburgh via Shotts
• Caledonian Sleeper services
There will be minor changes to:
• Glasgow/Edinburgh – Alloa / Dunblane / Perth
• Edinburgh – Bathgate / Dunblane
• Fife Circle
• Edinburgh – Newcraighall
A small number of services have been cancelled.
• Glasgow – Oban / Fort William / Mallaig – buses will replace trains
• Inverness and Kyle of Lochalsh / Wick / Thurso - buses will replace trains
• Glasgow – Carlisle - buses will replace trains between Kilmarnock – Dumfries / Carlisle
• Stranraer / Girvan – Kilmarnock: buses will replace trains
• An amended service will operate Edinburgh – North Berwick.
Media inquiries
Iain Wilson: 0141 335 4565/iain.wilson@firstgroup.com
Notes to editors
The new service will be subsidised by the Scottish Government which is reopening the rail link at a cost of more than £300 million.
It would cost £1.4m to convert the trains for conductors to open and close doors. The modifications would also delay the timing of the new route opening which is scheduled for December.
It will offer major benefits to passengers - and create 130 new jobs.
No conductors will lose their jobs.
The protection of the train is the driver’s responsibility on all ScotRail services regardless of the grade of the second person on board – a ticket examiner or a conductor. In so far as evacuation is concerned, all on board staff are trained in evacuation.
Safety is the key value of our company. The majority of existing ScotRail services already run with driver operated doors and ticket examiners. There would be no question of these trains operating if they were not safe. ScotRail has over 25 years’ experience of running such services.
