Plans and improvements on track as Mary Mulligan MSP visits Bathgate Station
Thursday 23 October 2008
Mary Mulligan, MSP for Linlithgow, will join Peter Williams, commercial director at First ScotRail and colleagues at Bathgate Station to discuss plans and improvements which are on track for customers.
The visit coincides with a week-long tour of the network by First ScotRail’s senior managers to celebrate the fourth anniversary of the franchise.
Mrs Mulligan will be talked through plans for the new Bathgate Station as well as the work which is taking place at stations along the route to Edinburgh – and the benefits they will bring to customers.
By the end of October, the majority of the line between Edinburgh and Bathgate will be double tracked, resulting in the improved reliability of services.
And a new station will be built to replace the existing one at Bathgate within the next two years, It will be staffed, with a ticket office as well as lifts and a footbridge, providing full step free access.
On completion, a new rail link to Airdrie and beyond, will deliver rail travel opportunities to communities in the surrounding areas. The work is part of the £300million Transport Scotland funded Airdrie to Bathgate Rail Link project being delivered in partnership with Network Rail.
Peter Williams said: “Customers can look forward to improved station facilities and service reliability on completion of these works. As we celebrate the fourth anniversary of the franchise, we can reflect on what has been achieved over the past 12 months - and what is still to come. We have much to be proud of and as we look ahead, we will continue to focus on delivering even further improvements and enhancements, with more trains, more capacity and more journey opportunities for communities across Scotland.”
First ScotRail has continued to make strong progress over the past 12 months. Highlights include:
• Record levels of overall customer satisfaction – at 88%, eight percentage points higher than the national average among UK train operators.
• Passenger growth – up 4% year on year and 20% in four years
• Winning the ‘UK Passenger Operator of the Year’ title at the prestigious National Rail Awards last month
ENDS
Media enquiries:
Lally Cowell, PR Manager, First ScotRail, Tel. 0141 335 4788 / lally.cowell@firstgroup.com
First ScotRail out of hours - 07738 141 198 / www.firstscotrail.com
Notes to Editors
• First ScotRail provides more than 2,100 services a day
• There are now more than 81million passenger journeys a year on our network.
• First ScotRail gained Investor in People accreditation this year. With 4,300 employees, we are one of the largest private sector organisations in Scotland with such approval.