Eastwood MSP Jackson Carlaw has hit out at the Scottish Government following cuts to East Renfrewshire train services.

It was announced by ScotRail that a temporary train timetable would be put in place the following day on Tuesday, July 9

This has been introduced because of a pay dispute between ScotRail and the rail trade unions with fewer drivers accepting overtime shifts.

Mr Carlaw said that ministers should be considered at fault for the reduced train services now in place after the Scottish Government made the decision to nationalise the train operator more than two years ago. 

He told the Glasgow Times: “The temporary train timetable for the East Kilbride and Neilston routes represent a significant reduction in services for my constituents.

“The scale of the service cuts for stations in Eastwood is hugely concerning and the availability of trains has been markedly reduced.

“The SNP nationalised ScotRail in April 2022 and the Scottish Government must accept blame for the dismal cuts to services now in place on Eastwood’s train routes.”

Both the East Kilbride line with stops at Thornliebank, Giffnock, Clarkston and Busby and the Neilston route for passengers who use Williamwood, Whitecraigs and Patterton train stations are impacted by the timetable amendments.

The East Kilbride line has been reduced from the provision of two core daytime services to just the one outside peak travel times between Monday and Saturday.

Key morning midweek services on the Neilston route have been removed including the trains scheduled to depart for Glasgow at 7.41am and 8.07am.

The 9.36pm and 10.35pm trains from Glasgow to Neilston are also missing from ScotRail’s temporary timetable.

Mr Carlaw said he has written to the Cabinet Secretary for Transport Fiona Hyslop to highlight the “detrimental impact of the cuts on the availability of train services for his constituents” and called on the Scottish Government to prioritise the early return of the full timetable.

The Scottish Conservative politician has also written to ScotRail’s managing director over the reduction in services.

“I have written to the Cabinet Secretary for Transport to highlight the damaging impact of the reduced train services in Eastwood and stressed that restoring the full timetable must be viewed as a priority issue by the Scottish Government,” he added.

“The vast cuts to train services my constituents are now having to endure is a major failure in the early years of the SNP’s public ownership model.”

Responding to Mr Carlaw’s comments, a Transport Scotland spokesperson told the Barrhead News that while train planning and staff rotas are operational matters for ScotRail, they fully expect any timetable to give the best reliability and availability for passengers.

"Changes are communicated well in advance to enable effective journey planning," they added.

“We acknowledge the desire of rail unions to negotiate a fair settlement for their members.

“ScotRail, as a public body and the employer, has responsibility and the ability to negotiate within the limits of public sector pay metrics.

However, as rail unions have been made aware, any offer beyond these requires Scottish Government approval at senior level following the appropriate process.

“We would encourage rail unions to continue meaningful dialogue with ScotRail, so that a mutually agreeable outcome can be reached as soon as possible.”