Making Rail Travel Cheaper

Scotrail Nationalised, Peak Fares Scrapped

On 1 April 2022 ScotRail services transferred into public control and ownership.

Rail passenger services are now provided within the public sector, by an arm’s length company owned and controlled by the Scottish Government. Dutch firm Abellio has been running the franchise since 2015, but had its contract ended early amid criticism over cancellations and performance levels.

This has not only been good for passengers but for staff too. The publicly-owned ScotRail’s culture has been built on Fair Work, with Fair Work First principles embedded into its policies and practices.

This new beginning created a real opportunity to deliver a railway which is for the nation, and fully focused on being run for the benefit of its users – customers, staff and stakeholders, as opposed to shareholders. It was the delivery of a major SNP manifesto commitment from the last Scottish Parliament election in 2021.

September 2025 then saw the removal of all peak rail fares from ScotRail train services. Tickets at any time of day are now available at the off-peak rate.

This move cuts as much as 36% from the price of a return ticket on some routes from stations in the Angus South constituency, making rail travel more affordable.

As well as keeping costs down for customers, the Scottish Government’s removal of peak fares ensures ticketing is simpler and more flexible.  

This decisive action has enabled families to keep more of what they earn, helping achieve the SNP government’s driving mission of eradicating child poverty. By encouraging more people to leave the car at home, this change also supports our work to tackle the climate crisis.