SCOTRAIL “cannot justify” its 3.8 per cent fare rise for passengers, the RMT union said today.

Three years after the rail operator was taken into public ownership by Scotland’s SNP government, research from transport and infrastructure consultancy Steer has estimated that the company’s economic impact was £4.02 billion in 2024, as it supported 11,300 jobs over the year.

ScotRail managing director Joanne Maguire described the report as evidence of a “growing list of achievements.”