Rail journey times between Edinburgh and Glasgow via Shotts will be slashed by up to 33 minutes when a new winter timetable starts in ten days time.
Transport Scotland has announced a new hourly service between Glasgow Central and Edinburgh Waverley, starting on Monday, December 14, that will more than double the number of journeys on the route through the Lothians and Lanarkshire.
Although the other service across Scotland's central belt between Glasgow Queen Street and Edinburgh Waverley takes only around 55 minutes, the current trip time between Glasgow Central and Edinburgh Waverley is a slower 96 minutes.
The new service will whittle that time down to 63 minutes by having fewer stops.
The ScotRail operated service will stop at Bellshill, Shotts, West Calder, Livingston South and Haymarket. It will run between the current hourly all stops service and reduces the need for Lanarkshire passengers heading for Edinburgh to travel via Glasgow.
Transport Minister Stewart Stevenson, speaking on the eve of the Copenhagen climate summit, said:
"These new services demonstrate we are committed to helping more people make the switch away from the private car to more sustainable modes of transport."
The service is the first in a package of improvements between Glasgow and Edinburgh, as identified in the Scottish Government’s Strategic Transport Projects Review.
Journey times will also be cut between the principal stations on the route to both Glasgow and Edinburgh and additional services will operate in the evening in both directions, offering a more regular service for passengers.
The new services mean 58 train journeys on the Shotts line linking Edinburgh and Glasgow Central compared to the existing 28.
Steve Montgomery, ScotRail’s managing director, said:
"I welcome these increases to services. The enhancements will bring many benefits to our growing number of customers."
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