Rail passengers and businesses in Scotland are furious after more than 700 train services were axed by the national operator ScotRail in an escalating dispute over pay.
Scores of drivers have refused ScotRail requests to work overtime shifts, forcing the newly nationalised company to scrap about 30% of its scheduled weekday rail services. That has left commuters unable to get home or to work early or late in the day.
On Twitter, commuters accused the rail operator of presiding over “an absolute joke” and “a complete disaster”. One key worker said it was “scandalous” that late-night services had been removed.
Is this some sort of joke?? Last train from Glasgow to glengarnock/Largs now 22:00? What about people who work til 10pm no buses now no trains so we just to be left stranded? Absolute joke
— KᗩTY ᑕOᗯᗩᑎ (@KatyCowan86) May 19, 2022
I see the new @ScotRail timetable is introducing its own lockdown by ensuring we can’t travel anywhere in the evening.
— Fergus Muirhead (@fergusmuirhead) May 19, 2022
@ScotRail Emergency timetable is complete disaster for anyone commuting between Dunblane or BofA and Glasgow. Only one morning service that will arrive before 9am. Total nightmare
— msksquared (@msksquared) May 19, 2022
Late night key worker throughout the pandemic. Absolutely scandalous that you would remove late night services completely. Disgusted doesn't cover it.
— AlanM (@twist3dkites) May 19, 2022
The Night Time Industries Association, which represents nightclubs, venues, bars and restaurants, said the cuts were another blow to their viability after two years of Covid restrictions. It said the loss of later trains threatened the safety of customers and staff travelling home.
“These devastating cuts to rail services will leave commuters rushing to catch early trains home, and prevent ordinary people across Scotland from travelling in to our towns and cities during the evenings,” the group said.
From Monday the last weekday train from Glasgow to Dundee and intermediate stations will leave at 7.10pm instead of 11.10pm; the last service from Edinburgh to Glasgow will leave at 10.15pm instead of 11.45pm; and the last train from Edinburgh to Perth will leave at 8pm rather than 11.13pm. All 10 ScotRail trains to and from Dunbar have been cancelled, leaving passengers reliant on a handful of east coast mainline trains.
Similar cuts are expected to Saturday and Sunday rail services, ScotRail has said.
ScotRail is reliant on drivers taking on extra shifts but its 2.2% pay offer has been rejected by the drivers’ union Aslef, which is preparing to ballot its members in early June on strike action. In advance of that ballot, drivers are independently refusing to take on extra shifts, union leaders have said.
Nicola Sturgeon, the first minister, was accused by Labour and Conservative leaders during first minister’s questions of failing to apologise to commuters and of presiding over unacceptable and disastrous cuts to services.
Sturgeon urged ScotRail and Aslef to resolve the dispute as soon as possible, and insisted the service cuts were temporary. She said it had been made “very, very clear” to ScotRail that it had to solve the crisis.
She said ScotRail was training additional drivers to reduce reliance on overtime working, and she said any pay deal had to be fair and affordable. She stopped short of apologising but said the “regrettable” cuts were “disruptive and not acceptable”.
David Simpson, ScotRail’s service delivery director, told BBC Scotland that the disruption could last for some months if the company was unable to reach a deal with Aslef.
“I hope it’s less than that, I’m always hopeful we’ll make some progress. I think certainly weeks is potentially possible but we’ll do everything in our power to keep the duration of this as short as possible,” he said.
