Rail chaos for commuters
West Lothian commuters faced delays and disruption on train services from this week after ScotRail announced it would introduce a temporary timetable due to a shortage of drivers.
The temporary timetable will be enforced due to a “significant” number of drivers not working overtime or on rest days after rejecting a 2.2 per cent pay offer.
Many people in the area have already reported disruption to journeys.
One said:“The service was bad enough before shortage. Thank goodness I don’t rely on it, but my two daughters both work in Edinburgh and it’s awful for them.”
The move is a result of the ongoing impact of a significant number of drivers declining to make themselves available for overtime or rest day working, following an announcement by the drivers ’union ASLEF that it will ballot for industrial action over pay.
It affects the Edinburgh to Helensburgh line, which runs through Uphall, Livingston, Bathgate and Blackridge and the Livingston South and Linlithgow services.
ScotRail is currently working on temporary timetables for Saturdays, which will be broadly similar to the Monday to Friday timetable, as well as timetables for Sundays, and will update customers in the coming days.
Like many train operators across Britain, ScotRail has relied on drivers working overtime or on their rest days.
In 2019, ScotRail committed to employing more drivers to phase out the reliance on this, however, the pandemic meant that driver training was significantly delayed.
ScotRail is still awaiting formal notification from ASLEF and the RMT on the details of the ballots for industrial action.
David Simpson, ScotRail Service Delivery Director, said: “We are very sorry to customers for the disruption of recent days.
“We know what customers want more than anything is certainty and reliability, which is why we are introducing a temporary timetable.
“We want to resolve this dispute with the trade unions and move forward together to provide the safest, greenest, and most reliable railway we can for Scotland. We remain open to further talks with the trade unions.
“We ask customers to check their journey on our website, mobile app, and through our social media channels as train times will have changed.”
For more information go to scotrail.co.uk/ timetable-update