A third of ScotRail’s services will be cut when a new “temporary” timetable comes into force next week in response to a pay dispute with staff.
Evening trains will be particularly hard hit, with many commuters facing an early dash to the station or wondering how to get home.
First Minister Nicola Sturgeon admitted earlier today the cutbacks are “not acceptable” as it emerged the timetable will be in place until at least June 3.
Here’s a breakdown of the services near you that have been changed
As revealed yesterday, train services between Aberdeen and Inverness will be among those cut, but other routes are in the firing line as well, including between the Granite City and Dundee.
At the moment, the last train between the two cities leaves at 11.08pm but this will be cut, leaving just the 9.54pm option.
For those heading south from Inverness, the latest train to Perth currently leaves at 8.23pm but this will change to 6.53pm.
Elsewhere in the Highlands, the Fort William to Glasgow service will be drastically cut, with the latest service being cut from 5.37pm to 11.40am.
Another place that will be badly effected is Wick, with the far north town’s link to Inverness being cut from 4pm to 12.34pm.
The changes have not only caused worry for commuters, but also for the hospitality and night-life sectors, industries which have been badly hit by the Covid-19 pandemic.
Worry for vital industries
In a statement, Night Time Industries Association (NTIA) Scotland said: “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 cites during the evenings.
“Such cuts to services, even temporarily, is yet another cruel blow for Scotland’s hard pressed night time economy and cultural sector which are yet to recover from the pandemic.
“With these beleaguered industries facing an extremely challenging start to 2022, this news presents considerable concerns both around economic and employment impacts, and of course over the safety of customers and staff traveling home safely at night.
“The Scottish Government must urgently resolve this dispute or they will be putting at risk both Scotland’s economic recovery and the future of many thousands of small businesses and jobs.”
Aberdeen South MP Stephen Flynn said it was “unacceptable” that the first train into the city would not arrive until after 9am.
He added: “There’s also the fact that there is now barely enough time to get your tea before having to rush to get the last train home on a weeknight from both our capital city and Glasgow.
“Clearly there are longstanding issues which won’t be resolved overnight, but ScotRail need to look at this again and come back with services that accommodate the working day until the temporary timetable can be concluded and normal services are back on track.”
The temporary timetable for Monday to Friday can be viewed online at scotrail.co.uk/timetable-update
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