Rail ratings are getting back on track

Rail passenger services are getting better after a series of disruptions, new figures reveal.

The number of ScotRail services running on time and inside the public performance measure in the four weeks to July 23 was 93.7 per cent, compared to 91.1 per cent in the same period of last year.

ScotRail bosses were slated for late and cancelled trains last year, with campaigners calling for Dutch parent firm Abellio to lose the franchise to run the railways.

However, a plan was put in place to tighten performance and the annual average measure is now at 90.7 per cent, ahead of a 90.5 per cent target and 1.1 per cent higher than when the improvement plan was first brought in.

Perry Ramsey, operations director at the ScotRail Alliance, said:“The performance of the ScotRail Alliance continues to improve, thanks to the hard work of our dedicated staff.

“To have outperformed our improvement plan, while carrying out the biggest upgrade to the railway network in Scotland since Victorian times, is a great achievement.

“This week, the national rail passenger survey showed that nine out of 10 passengers are satisfied with ScotRail, equalling our best ever score.

“But we aren’t complacent. We’re doing everything we can to build the best railway Scotland’s ever had.

“That means new and better trains, delivering faster journeys, more seats and better services for our customers.”

The figures follow the national rail passenger survey in which ScotRail equalled its best-ever performance.