All
ScotRail
fares


have
risen
by
3.8
per
cent
today,
but
opposition
politicans
are
speaking
of
‘dismayed’
passengers
and
a
‘spiral
of
decline’.

The
increase
is
lower
than
the
4.6
per
cent
rises
in
England
and
Wales
a
month
ago,
but
the
Scottish
increase
covers
all
fares
rather
than
just
those
which
are
regulated.

For
commuters
the
rise
will
effectively
be
the
second
in
just
over
six
months,
because
a
year-long
pilot
to
suspend
peak
fares
ended
in
September.
It
had
attracted
almost
7
per
cent
more
passengers,
but
the
government
said
that
figure
needed
to
have
been
10
per
cent
in
order
to
break
even.

Transport
secretary
Fiona
Hyslop
said:
‘We
know
that
any
increase
is
unwelcome
for
passengers,
therefore
we
have
kept
the
rise
as
low
as
possible
to
maintain
the
attractiveness
and
affordability
of
rail
as
a
travel
option.

‘We
continue
to
look
at
ways
to
encourage
greater
rail
use
and
that
is
why
we
are
continuing
our
20
per
cent
discounts
on
season
tickets
until
September
2025
as
planned
and
expanding
the
availability
of
flexipass.

‘ScotRail
also
continue
to
develop
fares
initiatives
which
can
help
attract
more
passengers,
while
offering
savings
and
added
value
to
existing
rail
users.’

Sue
Webber,
who
is
the
Conservative
transport
spokeswoman,
said:
‘Nicola
Sturgeon
promised
a
bright
new
future
for
Scotland’s
railways
when
nationalising
it
almost
three
years
ago,
but
the
exact
opposite
has
happened.

‘Passengers
will
be
dismayed
they
will
have
to
fork
out
even
more
in
the
coming
months
for
services
that
are
frequently
cancelled
and
delayed.’

For
Labour,
Claire
Baker
said
the
increase
would
‘hammer’
passengers,
and
lead
to
a
‘spiral
of
decline’,
while
the
Scottish
Green
Party’s
spokesman
Mark
Ruskell
said
rail
travel
needed
to
be
‘affordable
and
accessible’
to
attract
people
out
of
their
cars.

He
continued:
‘When
the
Scottish
Greens
were
in
government
we
secured
the
removal
of
peak
rail
fares,
only
for
the
SNP
to
bring
them
back
as
soon
as
we
were
out
of
the
room.

‘If
we
want
safer
and
cleaner
communities
and
less
cars
on
our
roads,
then
we
need
to
cut
the
cost
of
public
transport.’

Daniel
O’Malley
of
the
Scottish
Liberal
Democrats
said:
‘Scotland
needs
a
cheap,
reliable
and
frequent
rail
service
–
it’s
a
win-win
for
passengers
and
the
planet.’
He
also
called
for
more
lines
to
be
reopened.

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