ScotRail urged to reconsider decision to cut free child travel

Politicians, trade unions and green campaigners have called on ScotRail to reconsider its plans to cut free rail travel for children in Scotland, which it is claimed will hit families hard and impact on environmental targets.

The train network, owned by Abellio, has announced that it will end the Kids Go Free scheme – under which up to two children can travel free with a paying adult – in the New Year.

ScotRail will now charge £1 for each child from January, but claims the fare will be available to more customers including season ticket holders. Up to four Kids for a Quid tickets will be available per adult.

However, with fare rises of 2.8 per cent announced just last month, the proposals have met with alarm.

‘Hefty snub’

Friends of the Earth Scotland air pollution campaigner Gavin Thomson said it was “hefty snub” to those wanting to use a greener option.

“Affordable and accessible public transport is essential if we want to reduce our climate emissions and improve our air quality,” he said.

“Scotrail must urgently reconsider this move that will seriously impact on thousands of families across the country.”

Scottish Labour’s transport spokesman Colin Smyth MSP also called on ScotRail to rethink, adding: “This rip-off fare rise will see passengers handing out even more money to a private company which is failing them time and time again.”

Call for public ownership

Transport union TSSA launched a petition to bring ScotRail back in to the public ownership with leader Manuel Cortes claiming Abellio ScotRail bosses had this year achieved “the worst-ever results for service since records began”.

“One of the last decent things you could say about ScotRail was their policy to let kids go free,” he said. “What a great way to treat our children – and their hard-pressed parents.”

A ScotRail spokesperson said: “We are committed to providing our customers with the opportunity to travel across our services and the Kids for a Quid offer is available on a wider range of adult tickets.

Extra benefits

“This provides families with the opportunity to travel throughout the country, and take advantage of free entry to the many attractions that we have been able to secure.”

A Transport Scotland spokesman claimed that ScotRail carried 98 million passengers in 2017-8, an increase of 24 million in a decade.

“We do of course recognise that rail fare increases are unwelcome, particularly when performance falls short of passengers and Ministerial expectations,” he added, claiming the impact had been minimised by capping price increases.

“This means, in Scotland, average fares increases are lower than in England and Wales,” he said.