Scotrail best train operator in Britain

Scotrail has become the best-performing large train operator in the UK, according to new figures.

The train operator’s moving annual average (MAA) – measuring reliability and punctuality – hit 90.9 per cent for the year to 19 August.

The latest result is ahead of the improvement plan target of 90.5 per cent and higher than the remaining four large train operators, Northern, Southeastern, South West Trains and Govia Thameslink Railway.

Scotrail ranks seventh out of 23 train operating firms in the UK in the Network Rail figures, which averaged 88.3 per cent MAA nationwide.

An improvement plan was created last year amid a turbulent period for the Abellio Scotrail Alliance when it faced calls to be stripped of its £7 billion ten-year franchise to run Scotland’s railways after performance slipped below contracted standards.

Tuesday was the best single-day’s performance since the franchise was taken over in 2015, with public performance measure (PPM) of 97.4 per cent, but further figures show a slight drop in performance in the four weeks to 19 August.