Current status: Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 17 September 2025
To ask the Scottish Government what steps it is taking to ensure that passengers from Lockerbie train station can benefit from the removal of peak fares.
ScotRail is not currently contracted or funded by Transport Scotland to operate rail services to Lockerbie. This has been investigated several times in the past but cannot be delivered efficiently by extending an existing service to Lockerbie.
It would require the leasing of additional trains and recruitment of staff resulting in an increased cost of several million pounds each year. It is therefore most cost efficient to the taxpayer, for cross-border operators to serve the station.
Options were explored to find a solution for Lockerbie station, however due to a range of factors, no sensible solution could be progressed at this time.