Nightmare on tracks

SCOTRAIL’S response to the recent storms encapsulated i ts staff ’ s disgraceful attitude since Abellio won the right to take over from First Group’s tardy stewardship this April.

Last Friday morning, I was told by two customer service floorwalkers seconded to Johnstone railway station that there were no replacement bus services. They clearly found the lack of provision amusing.

Matters got worse at Glasgow Central, where the only westbound train available was for Gourock at 19.50. Despite the information on both information boards and the platform monitor screen, it sped past Cardonald and both Hillington stations, leaving several irate commuters disembarking with me at Paisley Gilmour Street.

Come Saturday, a reduced service from Johnstone saw the fiasco of the customer service floorwalkers not even bothering to tell anyone until after a train had arrived at the empty platform opposite that all trains would be operating only from that line, resulting in chaos on the station’s only passenger bridge as those disembarking battled to get past those trying to reach the train. It could easily have ended in injury had but one person in the scrum slipped.

The return journey was marked with a final insult to injury for those travelling further, disembarking in time to watch a heavy freight train thundering up from the West Coast line they’d been told was somehow still too dangerous for passenger trains, but not apparently for ones carrying tonnes of flammable liquids.

ScotRail may claim its actions over the past week have been with passenger safety in mind, but it seems more to suit themselves.

The sooner all rail i s returned t o public ownership and held accountable to HM Government for the nation’s benefit, the better.

MARK BOYLE, Johnstone, Renfrewshire.