The cleanliness of trains and stations across Scotland’s Railway has improved over the past twelve months, according to new figures released today, Friday, 1 May 2020.
The Service Quality Incentive Regime (SQUIRE) report released by Transport Scotland has shown that the cleanliness of ScotRail trains, and availability of on-board toilets, improved by an accumulative 11 per cent between April 2019 and February 2020, compared to the same period the previous year.
ScotRail’s introduction of dedicated travelling cleaning crews along with extensive train cleaning in depots overnight have helped lead to the improvement in cleanliness, and investment in new controlled emission tank facilities at Yoker depot has increased the availability of on-board toilets.
Litter and contamination at stations improved by 16 per cent in 2019/20 compared to the previous year, thanks to a closer working relationship with Network Rail to repair platform surface faults.
SQUIRE is used by Transport Scotland to assess facilities on ScotRail trains and at stations, with results published in quarterly reporting periods.
If something is found during routine SQUIRE inspections that does not meet the expected high standard, ScotRail contributes to the SQUIRE investment fund.
The regime is the toughest of its kind in the UK and is a fundamental part of both Transport Scotland and ScotRail’s efforts to improve customer experience.
ScotRail made total contributions of £854,028 (excluding RPI) to the SQUIRE investment fund in the most recent reporting period; 9 December 2019 to 31 March 2020.
All money raised through the SQUIRE fund is reinvested into projects across Scotland’s Railway.
David Lister, ScotRail Sustainability & Safety Assurance Director, said:
“Everyone at ScotRail has been working really hard to deliver for our customers in the areas that matter most, and these new figures are testament to that.
“There’s never been a more pertinent time to deliver high levels of cleanliness across Scotland’s Railway, and we’ll be doing everything we can to make sure that continues for the months and years to come.”