As it has done in previous years, train operator ScotRail will be providing extra capacity for people travelling to the International Ayr Show and Largs Viking Festival this weekend.

Together, the events are one of Ayrshire’s biggest weekends of the year, so the operator will be running extra trains and express services, and a total of 178 additional carriages.

The enhanced timetable will run this Saturday (5 September), when ScotRail expects thousands of people to travel to Ayr for the International Ayr Show – Festival of Flight.

At the same time, Largs hosts the final weekend of its annual Viking Festival.

ScotRail will operate three trains per hour between Glasgow Central and Ayr, including an express service every hour, calling at Paisley Gilmour Street, Johnstone and Kilwinning.

There will also be extra shuttle services running between Kilwinning and Ayr before and after the Ayr Show, providing seats for passengers travelling from Irvine, Barassie, Troon, Prestwick and Newton-on-Ayr.

Train services between Largs and Glasgow Central will run between Largs and Kilwinning only on Saturday, so passengers travelling between Largs and Glasgow will need to change trains at Kilwinning.

ScotRail’s services this weekend are complicated by improvement works taking place in the Kilmarnock area, as a result of which trains between Kilmarnock and Girvan / Stranraer will operate between Ayr and Girvan / Stranraer only. Rail replacement buses will run between Kilmarnock and Ayr.

Queuing systems will operate at Glasgow Central and Ayr stations.

We know just how popular the International Ayr Show is, and with the Largs Viking Festival taking place at the same time, we’re expecting a busy day for the railway across Ayrshire.

That’s why we’re doing even more this year, with three trains an hour between Glasgow and Ayr, dedicated express services, additional shuttle trains, and 178 extra carriages compared with a normal Saturday.

Our plan is designed to provide more seats on board before the events and, importantly, more options to get people moving again afterwards when thousands of customers will be making their way home at the same time.

Phil Campbell, ScotRail Customer Operations Director