Commuters in West Dunbartonshire will be asked to fork out extra for their train tickets as fares increased by their largest margin in a decade.
Dumbarton MSP Jackie Baillie has slammed the “reckless” decision to hike fares in January.
The SNP confirmed the 3.8 percent increase with transport minister Graeme Dey admitting the decision wasn’t “taken lightly” when questioned by Ms Baillie’s Labour colleague Neil Bibby MSP in parliament last week.
Under existing rules, the increase should have been limited to 2.8 percent for off-peak fares – but the Government scrapped this formula for the first time since the start of the current franchise in order to impose a bigger rise.
This comes as services are delayed and cancelled virtually every day with over 100 restricted on a single day last week which was put down to Covid-related absences.
Ms Baillie said: “It is wildly reckless to hit passengers with this brutal rip-off fare rise while a cost of living crisis rages on.
“Local passengers will be forced to cough up extra, months before the rest of the UK because of the SNP’s decision to plough ahead with this in January.
“Slapping passengers with the biggest hike in a decade months before ScotRail is taken into public hands is an utterly shameful start.
“If the SNP are happy to let fares spiral and routes decline, then their takeover will mean little more than a fresh coat of paint.
“We need to show some real ambition for the future of ScotRail, so that we can finally put passengers first and build the green, affordable railway service we need.”
Transport Minister Graeme Dey told parliament last Tuesday that significant analysis had been carried out by ScotRail and Transport Scotland before confirming the rise saying: “The decision was not taken lightly.”
He explained the increase was “necessary” due to passenger numbers remaining well below pre-pandemic levels.
The minister advised applying no increase of a below retail price index (RPI) rise would have led to a recurring impact in future years.
He added: “We need to have a rail service that is financially sustainable.
“Fares do have to contribute to overall funding.”
