17.10.19
ScotRail’s surge in train punctuality ‘no fluke’
New research shows a huge ‘surge’ in ScotRail trains arriving on time, the biggest year-on-year increase in punctuality since 2015.
Scotland’s Railways delivered 36,200 more trains on time since April 1 2019, compared with the same period last year.
Throughout Scotland, 89.1% of trains ran by ScotRail met the rail industry standard Public Performance Measure (PPM) between September 15 to October 12 2019 - a 7.2% increase from this period in 2018.
Transport Scotland’s PPM, for which ScotRail is held accountable, requires trains to arrive at their destination under five minutes of their planned arrival time, having successfully stopped at all scheduled stations on the way.
ScotRail have implemented certain measures to better prepare for the effects of autumn weather, treating tracks earlier than previous years, a huge factor in the successful set of results.
One of the measures making a difference is Network Rail’s ‘leaf-busting’ trains, treating more than 20,000 more miles of track than 2019.
Rapid response crews have also been deployed at key locations across the network, ensuring incidents are dealt with quicker, minimising delays to services.
More care has been taken to keep railheads clean than ever before, with piloted microwave and cryogenic technologies, making a real difference to train efficiency.
Alex Hynes, managing director of Scotland’s Railway, said:
“It is great to see the hard work and dedication of our people paying off.”
"Customers have benefited from an extra 36,000 trains arriving on time since the start of the year compared to the same period last year, and that’s no fluke.”
“We’ve been more prepared than ever before this autumn, and everyone across Scotland’s Railway is continuing to work hard to deliver the consistent level of performance our customers expect and deserve.”
This welcome improvement comes after Government ordered ScotRail to remedy ‘poor performance’ back in February after failing to meet passenger satisfaction targets.