Scotrail RMT strike action and possible temporary service cuts to a third of services

[Rockhopperr]

Not sure how you can complain about extra services. It's better than nothing, also better than promising services and then cancelling last minute

They could still be cancelled last minute

 

[Deltic1961]

But there's no point putting on services last minute when everyone thinks they're cancelled.

At this stage people will either have decided not to travel at all or have arranged alternative transport as we have.

Just smacks of disorganisation at a company planning level whatever your political allegiance

 

[lachlan]

But there's no point putting on services last minute when everyone thinks they're cancelled.

At this stage people will either have decided not to travel at all or have arranged alternative transport as we have.

Just smacks of disorganisation at a company planning level whatever your political allegiance

I disagree. I can switch from the bus to the train right up to the last minute, and I imagine there are folks who may be joining friends for example and would head out if they see the trains are back on.

 

[Deltic1961]

Except they won't see. Nobody is going to check the app if they think there are no trains in the evening. I wouldn't.

 

[PaulMc7]

The tweets went out before 2pm. That's plenty of time to change your route home IMO. They deserve credit for actually putting them on too given the current situation

 

[ld0595]

Dammed if they do, dammed if they don't. Fair play to the teams working behind the scenes for making these extra services possible.

 

[Starmill]

Telling people that their train is cancelled and you're going to be leaving them high and dry two weeks before, and then reinstating some with eight hours notice, is incidentally the worst possible course of action commercially. The most disruption, the most ill will from your customers, and still all of the usual costs incurred. Oops!

 

[Scotrail314209]

Scotrail did seem to behave today with train formations.

There were 5 cars on a fair few of the Aberdeen to Glasgow services today, (formed of a 158 and 170 instead of a HST).

An improvement really, but the last Inverness to Glasgow was only 3 carriages.

 

[Davester50]

This is spot on to be fair. The problem is this site tends to be a magnet for unionists and people who are very anti-snp which considering the state of the alternative is quite hilarious. Damned if they do, damned if they don't springs to mind

Finger pointing is exactly why Scotland is in the trouble it is.

 

[PaulMc7]

Finger pointing is exactly why Scotland is in the trouble it is.

The SNP aren't great but unfortunately they're miles better than any of the alternatives. Things under Labour/Tories would be miles worse. The timing of a lot of the union issues also seems very coincidental too given they could have done this months ago but waited to now to do it

 

[greyman42]

The SNP aren't great but unfortunately they're miles better than any of the alternatives. Things under Labour/Tories would be miles worse.

Why would they?

 

[Falcon1200]

Not sure how you can complain about extra services. It's better than nothing, also better than promising services and then cancelling last minute

They could still be cancelled last minute

In the present circumstances I would simply not trust these trains to run, so even if Scotrail were to reinstate the last train when I attend a concert in Glasgow soon, I will still be driving.

 

[PaulMc7]

Why would they?

Have you seen England and the knock on effects of tory policy in Scotland? Ofcourse they'd be worse. The cost of living issues that cause the need for payrises now are purely down to the tories

 

[Falcon1200]

The SNP aren't great but unfortunately they're miles better than any of the alternatives.

While, as we all know, there are many problems with passenger train services in England, could you provide any examples where the service is worse than that currently offered by Scotrail under the direct control of the SNP ? Because I cannot think of a single one.

 

[PaulMc7]

While, as we all know, there are many problems with passenger train services in England, could you provide any examples where the service is worse than that currently offered by Scotrail under the direct control of the SNP ? Because I cannot think of a single one.

Given what's causing the problem I wouldn't say it's the worst service given that it's unavoidable. England stopped caring about covid far earlier than we did too. They're running what they can. The price is a bigger issue than the service and ironically all wage increases are going to do is make it even more expensive and price people out of the train.

 

[Berliner]

Except they won't see. Nobody is going to check the app if they think there are no trains in the evening. I wouldn't.

I checked the app and now know there are trains running later on the days and routes I need over the coming days. I've now changed my plans to go fully by train this weekend and won't be using the car at all. I've been using the train exclusively since last week to get around Scotland and its never let me down once.

 

[kylemore]

In the present circumstances I would simply not trust these trains to run, so even if Scotrail were to reinstate the last train when I attend a concert in Glasgow soon, I will still be driving.

Exactly, we appear to have a system descending into chaos.

I'm no unionist and I'm very well aware that any alternatives would be just as incompetent as the present Scottish Government.

I am also aware that the issues go much further back than the so-called "nationalisation" of Scotrail. However we should get away from this idea that the Scottish Government's involvement in Scotrail dates only from April 2022, Scotrail has been an adjunct of Government for decades, it's existence or otherwise entirely dependent on Government policy, it is in no way a "commercial" operation.

That said, the "private" bus industry in Scotland is increasingly in the pay of Government and utterly dependent on the State as the proportion of people paying their own fares declines. No wonder that Scotrail and the Bus operators were such enthusiastic supporters of the State's narrative during recent events.

 

[RomeoCharlie71]

ScotRail are advising they haven't been able to compile a temporary timetable for tomorrow (Sunday), so a "normal" timetable will be in operation with widespread cancellations as a result:

https://twitter.com/ScotRail/status/1530491540585447424

Unfortunately, it hasn’t been possible to implement a temporary timetable for tomorrow/today. That means the normal Sunday timetable will be in operation and there will be cancellations as a result.

The complexities of pulling together such widespread changes to timetables means it's not possible to do it in such a short space of time. We apologise to customers and advise them to check their journeys on our website and app before travelling.

 

[devon_metro]

The cost of living issues that cause the need for payrises now are purely down to the tories

Are the "tories" responsible for global oil and gas prices, Russia's invasion of Ukraine or supply chain issues caused by covid lockdowns in Asia? That's quite a stretch.

 

[320320]

The SNP aren't great but unfortunately they're miles better than any of the alternatives. Things under Labour/Tories would be miles worse. The timing of a lot of the union issues also seems very coincidental too given they could have done this months ago but waited to now to do it

Please elaborate.

The current Aslef dispute and any upcoming RMT dispute are and will be based on the pay offers made for this years settlement. These weren’t due until April 1st which was the same day that TS/SG took over the running of the railway.

TS/SG/Scotrail made a pay offer that has been rejected by members of both unions so unless you think the dispute is in regards to something else then this is just a rehash of the rubbish posted on the likes of twitter that will go to any lengths to absolve the SNP of any blame for this fiasco.

This is on their watch, there’s no Abellio to point the finger at any more.

 

[PaulMc7]

Are the "tories" responsible for global oil and gas prices, Russia's invasion of Ukraine or supply chain issues caused by covid lockdowns in Asia? That's quite a stretch.

Look at the rise in France compared to that of the UK. The tories have screwed everyone massively yet people blindly vote for them. People also fell for Brexit too which ironically is a part of staffing issues in a lot of industries.

Please elaborate.

The current Aslef dispute and any upcoming RMT dispute are and will be based on the pay offers made for this years settlement. These weren’t due until April 1st which was the same day that TS/SG took over the running of the railway.

TS/SG/Scotrail made a pay offer that has been rejected by members of both unions so unless you think the dispute is in regards to something else then this is just a rehash of the rubbish posted on the likes of twitter that will go to any lengths to absolve the SNP of any blame for this fiasco.

This is on their watch, there’s no Abellio to point the finger at any more.

I'm not absolving the SNP of any blame though that's the thing. The SNP aren't blameless but unions with very strong Labour links aren't blameless either. Asking for a very unrealistic payrise that actually could decrease train use in the future is also very risky

 

[43066]

Asking for a very unrealistic payrise that actually could decrease train use in the future is also very risky

I never realised passengers checked how much the train driver was earning before deciding whether to buy a ticket!

 

[PaulMc7]

I never realised passengers checked how much the train driver was earning before deciding whether to buy a ticket!

That's not what I meant and you know that. Wages push ticket prices up and considering the train is already far more expensive than the bus it just makes it more off putting

 

[43066]

That's not what I meant and you know that. Wages push ticket prices up and considering the train is already far more expensive than the bus it just makes it more off putting

I think you’ll find fares will go up regardless of what happens to wages, just as they do every year.

 

[PaulMc7]

I think you’ll find fares will go up regardless of what happens to wages, just as they do every year.

Wages are a huge factor behind that though. They need to be subsidised one way or the other so even more money doesn't get wasted on the trains and considering over the years trains have had far more cover than buses it just shows how bad the pricing actually is

 

[320320]

I’m not absolving the SNP of any blame though that's the thing. The SNP aren't blameless but unions with very strong Labour links aren't blameless either. Asking for a very unrealistic payrise that actually could decrease train use in the future is also very risky

Thats not the point you made. You implied that this dispute was sat on for months in order to specifically target the SNP when they took over. The pay anniversary wasn’t until April 1st so there was nothing to be in dispute about. The blame lies at the SNPs door for making a derogatory pay offer and refusing to negotiate until it led to dispute.

 

[Davester50]

Look at the rise in France compared to that of the UK. The tories have screwed everyone massively yet people blindly vote for them. People also fell for Brexit too which ironically is a part of staffing issues in a lot of industries.

I'm not absolving the SNP of any blame though that's the thing. The SNP aren't blameless but unions with very strong Labour links aren't blameless either. Asking for a very unrealistic payrise that actually could decrease train use in the future is also very risky

The French Government imposing something on a French Government company is fairly easy to do!
Our daft Tories flogged the family silver years ago.

Also, you do realise that it was the SNP/Greens that already cut services before the Industrial Action, right?

Oh for the days when ministers and leaders had standards. Remember when Wendy Alexander resigned over a £950 donation? You'd wish for ministers resigning over such things these days. It's a trivial matter compared with the Ferries, Airport, BiFab, Salmond Case, inapropriate contact with young people, the list grows.

 

[devon_metro]

Look at the rise in France compared to that of the UK. The tories have screwed everyone massively yet people blindly vote for them. People also fell for Brexit too which ironically is a part of staffing issues in a lot of industries.

I'm not absolving the SNP of any blame though that's the thing. The SNP aren't blameless but unions with very strong Labour links aren't blameless either. Asking for a very unrealistic payrise that actually could decrease train use in the future is also very risky

Did Brexit have a big impact on Scotrail driver staffing? I suspect not.

As for "blindly voting" - a lot of that goes on in Scotland.

France chose to heavily subsidise its energy prices, so inflation is lower. But ultimately that needs paying for somehow. Different policy choices, so different outcomes. To say that inflation is solely caused by the UK Government is nonsense talk though.

 

[43066]

Wages are a huge factor behind that though. They need to be subsidised one way or the other so even more money doesn't get wasted on the trains and considering over the years trains have had far more cover than buses it just shows how bad the pricing actually is

I’m not clear what point is actually being made here.

As I said, fares will be going up regardless because the political decision has been taken to shift more of the cost of the railways onto fare payers. The cost is made up of many elements - rolling stock charges being another huge one.

It’s interesting how wages is the only one that triggers people on here.

 

[PaulMc7]

I’m not clear what point is actually being made here.

As I said, fares will be going up regardless because the political decision has been taken to shift more of the cost of the railways onto fare payers. The cost is made up of many elements - rolling stock charges being one.

It’s interesting how wages is the only one that triggers people on here.

I mean I'm not remotely triggered by it but it's something in the current situation that is massively slept on especially by rail enthusiasts. If you want a stable railway network that people will use everything needs to be kept realistic and even a 4.2% wage increase is great considering what they're already on