Improvements at Girvan station need to be made if the public are to trust rail services.
That's the message from Sharon Dowey MSP as she insisted things have gone from bad to worse with train delays in recent months.
Her concerns come after ScotRail’s most recent performance update revealed that just 35.8 per cent of trains arrived on time (arriving within 59 seconds of its scheduled time) at the station – a new low from late last year’s figures where around 40 per cent of trains were arriving on time.
However, ScotRail revealed the public performance measure (PPM) figures for Girvan – which is the figure the rail firm is held to account by Transport Scotland – for the most recent four-week reporting period of January 8 to February 4 was 90.5 per cent.
This means that more than nine out of 10 trains arriving at Girvan station met their performance target.
Despite this, Mrs Dowey is calling on the Scottish Government minister for transport Jenny Gilruth to usher in improvements and “deliver for commuters in Girvan”.
She said: “Last year, when I noticed significant delays at Girvan station, I wrote to the SNP transport secretary and urged her to address the problem. Yet, instead of taking action to improve the service for passengers, things have moved in the opposite direction.
“The SNP told us that bringing ScotRail into public ownership would transform the service to deliver for passengers.
“Considering almost two thirds of trains aren’t arriving on time at Girvan Station, it’s clear that the rail service isn’t delivering anything but delays for passengers.
“The SNP transport secretary can’t just leave things as they are. We need to see improvements at Girvan station if the public are to trust ScotRail and be encouraged to use public transport.
“It’s getting to the stage where train delays are becoming the new norm in Girvan. How can anyone rely on the rail service for their commute when this is the case?
“Now, I’m calling on Jenny Gilruth to explain exactly how she plans to improve this situation and deliver for commuters in Girvan.”
Phil Campbell, ScotRail head of customer operations, said: “In the most recent reporting period, more than nine out of 10 trains arriving at Girvan station met their performance target, however, we understand and share the frustration of our customers when things do not go to plan, so we’ll continue to work flat out to deliver the service they expect and deserve.”
A Transport Scotland spokesperson said: “The minister is given regular updates about ScotRail operations and has asked Scottish Rail Holdings (SRH), who oversee ScotRail, to ensure they drive improvements in Ayr and Girvan.
“SRH is expected to report back to the minister in the near future.”
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