Commuters sweat amid rail chaos
Signals chaos leaves thousands stranded at stations
THOUSANDS of ScotRail passengers were faced with delays and cancellations last night after a signalling fault brought rush-hour services to a standstill.
A total of 13 routes were affected in the West of the country, sending tempers soaring along with temperatures as the heatwave continued to sweep across Scotland.
The problems came on Michael Matheson’s first full day as Transport Secretary.
ScotRail blamed a fault between Glasgow Central Station and Paisley Gilmour Street, affecting trains to Ayr, Ardrossan Harbour, Largs, Paisley Central, Gourock and Wemyss Bay.
A spokesman said that the fault had been repaired by 4pm, but by then, many trains were ‘out of position’.
This also affected a number of other services to East Renfrewshire and South Lanarkshire.
A further points problem on the Glasgow-Kilmarnock line near Stewarton in Ayrshire halted trains along the route.
There was also a signalling fault in Cumbernauld, halting trains for a time.
Elsewhere, passengers were stranded on a train between Paisley and Glasgow for an hour-and-a-half.
ScotRail staff were forced to hand out bottles of water to commuters in Glasgow Central as hundreds gathered to check the status of the service.
Temperatures hit 82.4F (28C) in Glasgow yesterday, while 88F (31.3C) was recorded in Aviemore in Inverness-shire. Scotland’s highest ever temperature was 91F (32.9C) at Greycrook, Roxburghshire, on August 9, 2003.
A number of passengers in Glasgow Central Station were left feeling frustrated by the delays and cancellations.
Joan Smith, 59, said: ‘I’m trying to get to Kirkhill but there’s absolutely nothing going out there at the moment.
‘It’s diabolical – and it’s boiling. On board this morning was pure hell, do they not have air conditioning?’
Matthew Fraser, 27, said: ‘I’m trying to get to Paisley tonight and I haven’t had any updates on when another train will be running.
‘I’m going to get the bus, but if there’s a huge queue then I’ll be getting a taxi.’
Claire McKenzie, 39, said: ‘It’s almost as bad as when the snow hit us a few months ago. Why can’t there be more plans in place? This was forecast days ago and they knew it would be hot.
‘My friend has been stuck on the train between Paisley and Glasgow for nearly two hours, with no water or anything. Her phone battery is running out as well and it’s scorching on board.’
Iain Campbell, 58, said: ‘It’s dangerously hot. Fair enough if the weather is affecting the lines and it’s not safe and if they’re doing all they can, then I can’t complain.’
Other commuters took to social media to vent their anger over the disruption.
Gavin Young wrote online: ‘Finally on a train after waiting more than 1 hour 45 minutes. Absolutely no thanks to ScotRail. All their announcements said that all services to Paisley are subject to delay or cancellation instead of ALL services from Glasgow Central.’
A ScotRail spokesman said bus replacement services were in place and train tickets would be accepted on First Glasgow Bus services.
The spokesman added: ‘To keep people moving, we’ve arranged for valid train tickets to be accepted on First Glasgow Bus services between Glasgow and Paisley and also McGill’s services between Glasgow and Gourock.
‘We share customers’ frustration when these things happen.
‘Customers can keep up to date with the latest information on social media, on our website and mobile app.
‘Anyone delayed by 30 minutes or more is entitled to compensation under our delay repay guarantee. To claim, simply keep hold of your ticket and visit our website or mobile app.’
Last month, ScotRail was hit with record fines after failing to meet two-thirds of its performance targets at the start of this year
It failed to meet standards in 22 areas, including cleanliness in trains, stations and toilets, security and customer service.
ScotRail’s failings mean it has racked up a record £4.6million in fines over the past financial year, including £1.6million in the past three months.
Figures published by Transport Scotland show that ScotRail missed performance targets in 22 out of 34 areas in the first three months of this year.
It is the fourth quarter in a row in which the operator has failed to meet benchmarks.
An independent watchdog survey also recently named Glasgow Queen Street – also operated by Abellio ScotRail – as Britain’s most unpopular station.
‘It’s diabolical – and it’s boiling’