Scottish stations to benefit from £3.5m investment

Rail stations across Scotland are set to benefit from a national investment programme that will deliver significant information and safety improvements to passenger facilities across the country, as well as cutting queues at stations.

Transport Scotland is investing over £3.5m in a package of additional improvements at stations to enhance passengers’ rail experience across Scotland. Improvements delivered over the last year through the Small Rail Fund, benefitting two out three stations in Scotland, have been welcomed by passengers and this further investment will see upgrades at even more stations across the country.

Transport Minister, Stewart Stevenson said:

"This Scottish Government is committed to improving rail travel experiences and through these safety and information upgrades we are making a difference to the quality of service people experience when travelling on our rail network.

"Following the improvements brought about by the Small Rail Fund last year, rail passengers will continue to benefit from our ongoing investment in their local stations".

To improve safety four additional stations will have CCTV implemented, while 10 will receive new Customer Information Systems; nine will have station lighting upgraded and six interactive Customer Information Towers are being installed.

An additional 25 Ticket Vending Machines are being installed to help cut queues at stations throughout Scotland.

The Long Line Public Address (LLPA) system, which improves the efficiency of passenger announcements, is planned to be extended to a further 26 stations. This helps keep passengers better informed about services.

Peter Williams, Commercial Director at First ScotRail, said:

"We work closely with Transport Scotland to deliver a range of facility enhancements, improving the overall journey experience for customers. In addition to our own investment programme, this funding has created opportunities for further improvements which rail users across Scotland will benefit from."

The full list of stations and improvements is available at www.transportscotland.gov.uk/small-rail-projects-2008