Borders Railway smashes forecast passenger figures

The Borders Railway has beaten traffic forecasts by 22%, with almost 700,000 passengers travelling on the route in its first six months of operation.

The Edinburgh WaverleyTweedbank route opened in September 2015 ( RAIL 783), and ScotRail’s latest figures show that 694,373 single journeys were made from September 6 2015 to March 6 2016.

The route’s terminus - Tweedbank - recorded 183,918 journeys in the first six months against a forecast of 18,978, followed by Galashiels on 104,593 (forecast: 20,567). Newtongrange also exceeded forecasts, with 50,480 single journeys (forecast: 46,449), as did Stow with 24,365 journeys (forecast: 5,129)

Eskbank recorded fewer journeys than forecast (65,672 against 114,568), as did Gorebridge (39,400 journeys compared with a forecast of 79,014) and Shawfair (9,398 single journeys against forecasts of 54,298).

Newcraighall, albeit not part of the Borders Railway project, beat its forecast of 865 passengers with a figure of 11,344. But Edinburgh Waverley reported a shortfall of 22,953 passengers to 205,203.

Announcing the figures, Scottish Transport Minister Humza Yousaf said: “These figures are fantastic news for the region, further justifying the decision to bring a railway line back to the Borders for the first time in over 40 years.”

ScotRail Alliance Managing Director Phil Verster added: “The extremely positive first six months is a wonderful start, and gives us a solid foundation on which to continue to attract new visitors to and from the Borders. We are committed to ensuring the lasting legacy of the Borders Railway.

“The success of the line has been a catalyst for other communities to champion their own rail links, and we are working closely with partners to encourage and support economic growth across Scotland.”