ScotRail’s new timetable will lead to a 10% cut in services compared to before the pandemic, Scottish Labour have said.
MSPs discussed the future of the rail operator in a debate at Holyrood on Thursday.
Abellio is to be stripped of its ScotRail contract from April 1, when the franchise will be brought under state-control.
Labour MSP Neil Bibby called for the Scottish Government to rule out compulsory redundancies for rail staff and reject ticket office closures.
He said ScotRail had announced their new timetable shortly before the debate began.
Mr Bibby said: “Far from increasing services, it represents a cut of one in 10 services compared to pre pandemic levels.
“It proposes 2,150 daily services compared to 2,400 before. A cut of 250.
“It proposes 590,000 seats per day, compared to 640,000 before. A cut of 50,000.
“No doubt we will hear a lot of spin from the Government But these are the facts, the inconvenient truth they will want to ignore.”
Recently announced ticket price increases would be “the biggest fare hike in a decade”, he said.
Jenny Gilruth, who was appointed Transport Minister last month after her predecessor Graeme Dey stepped down for health reasons, responded for the Government.
She said the Scottish Government had provided record investment in railways and she would be meeting with rail unions soon.
Ms Gilruth said: “It was clear even before the pandemic that some ScotRail services were significantly under-used.
“On off-peak services some trains were running virtually empty. That’s not an effective use of our finances.”
At the height of Covid, revenue droped to just 10% of pre-pandemic levels, she said.
Ms Gilruth continued: “Nearly half of ScotRail passengers have returned to services, which is good, but travel habits and purchasing patterns are changing with more people working from home.”
The new timetable would lead to 150 more daily services compared to December last year, she added.
ScotRail said it had altered its initial proposals following a consultation.
Operations director, David Simpson, said: “We know our customers want more trains, so we are pleased to be able to add 150 more services to the timetable from May 2022, delivering a service that is safe, reliable, green, clean, and fit for the future.
“This timetable is the start of the process of recovering from the pandemic and as passenger numbers increase, we will keep the number of services under regular review.
“What is clear from the evidence we’ve made publicly available is that providing a good rail service does not on its own attract significant numbers to public transport.
“Train operators, Government, and trade unions need to work together to encourage other policy levers to be used.”
