Greer Raises Paisley Canal Delays with Minister
As figures show the line to Paisley Canal was the worst performing line in Scotland over 2018, Green MSP Ross Greer raised the shockingly poor service for local commuters with the Scottish Government’s Transport Secretary. Data released this month shows that the number of trains arriving on time into Paisley Canal has dropped to 26.0% in the last year; barely one-in four.
On 13 December last year, Ross met with the Cabinet Secretary for Transport, Michael Matheson, and made the case for action to be taken on poor performance on the Paisley Canal, Largs and Milngavie lines, which regularly trade places as the most unreliable line in the country. Matheson pointed to a number of efforts being made, such as timetable changes and equipment upgrades, which officials believe will have a positive impact in the immediate future.
Ross Greer, Green MSP for the West of Scotland commented:
“Residents are being driven away from using the train by the shockingly unreliable service on the Paisley Canal line and, in the absence of a quality and alternative bus service for many, are getting into their cars, which only increases congestion, local air pollution and contributes towards the climate crisis. With only one in four trains on time is it any wonder that rail passengers are giving up?"
“It was useful to discuss the situation with the Cabinet Secretary and his officials. As I pointed out to him, the three worst performing lines in the country are all in the West of Scotland and they’re all lines coming out of Glasgow with sections of single track, making it near impossible to recover from any delays. I’ll be waiting with interest to see how the new timetable and other changes are having an effect, but they would need to make an unbelievably positive difference to get the Paisley Canal line on track to anything like an acceptable standard. We need some major investment to fix this problem, which in turn means some long-term thinking from the Scottish Government.”