ScotRail has re-issued a reminder for rail customers to only travel if it is essential for routes impacted by safety-critical engineering work taking place from Monday the 29th of January until Thursday the 1st of February.
Network Rail engineers will undertake the installation of a specialist netting system on a rock cutting over the Glasgow-Edinburgh main line, near Ratho.
The netting will support the prevention of rockfall from the cutting getting onto the line, making it safer for both customers and those who work on the railway.
The work will see substantial disruption for rail passengers travelling on the affected routes with reminders reiterated to only travel on the routes if it is essential to do so.
The routes impacted by the safety-critical work will be affected as follows:
- Glasgow – Edinburgh via Falkirk High services will terminate at Linlithgow
- There will be no train service between Edinburgh Waverley and Linlithgow
- Rail replacement buses will be limited and will run between Linlithgow and Edinburgh Park station. Ticket acceptance will be in place with Edinburgh Trams for travel between Edinburgh Park and Haymarket and Waverley.
- Dunblane – Edinburgh services will terminate at Falkirk Grahamston.
- There will be no train service between Edinburgh Waverley and Falkirk Grahamston.
- Rail replacement buses will be limited and will run between Falkirk Grahamston and Edinburgh Park station. Ticket acceptance in place with Edinburgh Trams for travel between Edinburgh Park and Haymarket and Waverley.
- Edinburgh – Helensburgh/Milngavie services will terminate at Bathgate.
- There will be no train service between Edinburgh Waverley and Bathgate.
- Rail replacement buses will be limited and will run between Bathgate and Edinburgh Park, calling at Livingstone North and Uphall. Ticket acceptance in place with Edinburgh Trams for travel between Edinburgh Park and Haymarket and Waverley.
- Inverness to Edinburgh services will run via Fife and will not call at Stirling.
Rail replacement buses will be limited and customers should be aware that journey times will be much longer, to find out more, click here.
Local bus services are also available however, capacity could be limited. Customers should be aware that rail ticket acceptance is not available. Those travelling on local bus services will need to buy tickets directly from the bus operator:
McGill's:
- X38 service between Stirling-Falkirk-Polmont-Linlithgow-Edinburgh.
- 900 service between Glasgow-Edinburgh.
- 902 service Glasgow-Livingston-Edinburgh Airport.
- 909 service Dunblane-Stirling-Edinburgh.
Lothian Country:
- X18 service between Armadale-Bathgate-Uphall-Edinburgh.
- X27 Bathgate-Livingston-Edinburgh.
- X28 Bathgate-Livingston-Edinburgh via Kirknewton.
To find oute more about the above bus services, please click here.
Rail customers who wish to make direct travel between Edinburgh and Glasgow can make use of the following routes which depart and terminate at Glasgow Central:
- Edinburgh – Glasgow via Shotts
- Edinburgh – Glasgow via Carstairs
Customers should be aware that limited capacity will be available with extended journey times of approximately 30 to 50 minutes longer than services which travel via Falkirk High.
“These safety critical engineering works will bring significant disruption to the services ScotRail can operate between Edinburgh and Glasgow, Bathgate, Linlithgow, Stirling, and Inverness.
“Our advice to customers travelling between Edinburgh and Glasgow via Falkirk High or via Bathgate, and between Edinburgh and Dunblane, is that you should only travel if your journey is essential.
“Customers travelling between Inverness and Edinburgh should also be aware that journey times will may be longer as those services are diverted via Fife, and will not call at Stirling.
“We understand the disruption this will cause to customers journeys, but it is essential that Network Rail carries out these works. We thank customers for their patience.”
Phil Cambell, ScotRail Customer Operations Director
“The improvements we're making on the route are vital to the safe and reliable running of the railway.
“While we appreciate that this work will cause some inconvenience to our customers, we'll deliver this project as quickly as possible to minimise disruption.
“Our thanks go to passengers for their patience while we complete this essential safety project.”
Liam Sumpter, Network Rail Scotland Route Director
God forbid that we should seek to rely on the railway or expect alternative travel on buses (or should we expect to partake of social alcoholic drinking on the same).Guess the person/s who run the railway (in Scotland and elsewhere) would aspire to say they could run it better if the passengers didn’t get in the way!