Nine-month high for trains running on time

More than 90 per cent of trains ran on time over the past four weeks, with the successful introduction of the new timetable delivering the best punctuality for customers since September 2018.

Across Scotland, 90.5 per cent of ScotRail trains met the rail industry standard public performance measure (PPM), arriving at their destination within 4 minutes and 59 seconds of their timetabled arrival time, having called at all scheduled stations.

The changes to the timetable on Sunday 19 May delivered 115,000 more seats on Scotland’s Railway compared to when Abellio took over the franchise in 2015. The first week of the new timetable saw 92.2 per cent of trains meet their punctuality target – also a nine-month high for a single week.

There were improvements for customers on routes all over the country during the period (28 April – 25 May), with cancellations in the Suburban East sector, which includes Fife and the Borders, at their lowest level in a year.

The successful delivery of the timetable changes also provided 99 per cent of the planned seats for customers in Fife and the Borders – the best week for availability of seats in more than two years.

The improved reliability in high speed trains is delivering for customers with an average of more than 10 in service each day, serving Scotland’s seven cities.

ScotRail is now running more than 2,400 trains every weekday, which is an increase of 11 per cent from 10 years ago, as Scotland’s Railway continues to grow faster than any other in the UK. This means that ScotRail now provides more than 97 million customer journeys each year.

ScotRail Alliance Managing Director Alex Hynes said: “The timetable changes we have made follows unprecedented investment in Scotland’s Railway. I am delighted we have been able to deliver the service our customers expect and deserve.

“Everyone across the ScotRail Alliance is continuing to work flat out every day to improve the service, and achieving our best punctuality since September last year shows that the hard work is delivering for our customers.”