ABELLIO AWARD SETS AMBITIONS HIGH FOR OUR RAILWAYS
Following confirmation that Abellio has been awarded the Scotrail franchise on a ten year basis with a break point after five years, Green MSPs say the promises of better services and the prospect of devolved control over our railways should lead to a raising of our ambition for Scottish rail services.
Patrick Harvie, Green MSP for Glasgow said:
"There is a certain irony in the Dutch public sector running Scotland's trains but Abellio has certainly made a strong set of promises for improving services. There's huge public appetite for bringing rail back into public hands, and I think it's realistic to start preparing for a public sector bid in 2020 if those powers are in our hands by that point.
"Everyone who cares about making the rail network a fantastic public service should now raise their ambition for what we can achieve, and hold Abellio to its commitments on a living wage, trade union representation, reduced fares and better services."
Alison Johnstone, Green MSP for Lothian and Co-Convenor of the Cross Party Group on Cycling said:
"Abellio made a noticeable effort to engage the cycling community in Scotland and I urge them to continue this dialogue as they deliver on their promise of a transformation for cyclists using our railways. Cyclists will want to see rapid progress on extra bike capacity on trains and at stations. The Dutch are famed for their world-class cycling culture so expectations will be high for delivering change in Scotland."