RAIL ANGER

165 trains ordered to skip scheduled

More than five trains a week are skipping station stops across Wishaw.

The numbers, revealed after a freedom of information request made by the Wishaw Press to Transport Scotland, show that between November 24 last year and June 24, trains ‘skip-stopped’ stations including Wishaw, Shieldmuir, Motherwell, Shotts and Carluke 165 times.

Skip-stopping is when a train cuts stations out of its journey to make sure that it reaches its final destination on time. For example, a train heading from Lanark to Glasgow Central might be running late so cuts out the likes of Carluke, Wishaw or Motherwell to make up time.

Stations in Glasgow, such as Argyle Street or Glasgow Central, are less likely to be affected by skip-stopping.

There were 73 trains which skipped Wishaw, with 42 missing out Shieldmuir and 28 passing by Carluke. Motherwell station was faced with 15 trains not stopping as scheduled with seven trains skipping Shotts.

The Wishaw Press had requested figures for the whole of last year. However, the information on skipstopping has only been kept by Scotrail from November 24.

Transport Scotland said that out of 90,800 trains, only 0.2 missed stops. But many passengers were left affected.

Motherwell and Wishaw MSP Clare Adamson said: “I understand the frustration that this causes passengers but the figures confirm that this only happened on 0.2 per cent of the 90,800 trains due to stop across Motherwell and Wishaw which is reassuring.

“Transport Minister Humza Yousaf has a progressive vision for Scotland’s railway services that includes the recently implemented passenger compensation scheme, a free week for season ticket holders and fines for Scotrail when they perform below standards.”

A Transport Scotland spokesman said: “Keeping Scotland’s railway