How I save money on ScotRail fares - in ways you might not have thought of

Of all the bees in their bonnet that people have about transport, rail fares are right up there - and the most frequently mentioned gripe when I ask what they most dislike about travelling.

I’ve been writing about this complex subject for years, but keep coming across new anomalies that enable passengers to save money - if you’re in the know.

ScotRail has announced that more trains than ever will run on Boxing Day - but services will finish earlier than normal on Christmas Eve and Hogmanay. | Jane Barlow/PA Wire

Transport Secretary Fiona Hyslop has acknowledged that people struggling with the cost-of-living crisis “don’t always see it as affordable or attractive”.

So after ScotRail ticket prices increased by 3.8 per cent on April 1 following an 8.7 per cent hike 12 months ago and the end of a trial suspension of peak fares last autumn, here are some ways you could cut the cost of rail travel in Scotland.

1. Split tickets

Due to a series of historical anomalies in the way fares were set, it can be cheaper to buy two or more tickets for the same journey, split into different sections.

This is particularly the case for trips between stations within the former Strathclyde region around Glasgow and elsewhere in Scotland.

This is because fares were set separately in the region until 20 years ago, often with lower increases than for the rest of ScotRail to encourage more train travel. However, regulations have since limited the ability to alter them.

As an example, an off-peak day return between Kilmarnock and Edinburgh costs £30.70 but the same ticket between Kilmarnock and Glasgow is £9.10, and £16.80 between Glasgow and Edinburgh - a total of £25.90 and a saving of £4.80.

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ScotRail has now added a Split Train Tickets page to its website where passengers can check whether they can save money. However, there is a limit to how many tickets this will split your journey into, so further savings may be possible.

But ScotRail’s commercial director Claire Dickie explained to me that split tickets came with strings attached, such as the need to ensure the train you are travelling in stops at the station where you have split your ticket.

She said: “Tickets have different terms and conditions, so customers may well be trading flexibility for price.”

2. Buying a ticket to a station beyond your destination

This was a new one for me, but useful if you are making a relatively short journey and not returning the same day.

Historically, there were separate fares structures for short and long-distance journeys, with only day returns available for shorter journeys.

ScotRail has since addressed this on some routes such as Edinburgh-Glasgow by introducing “open return” tickets, but I encountered a glaring example of where they do not exist when travelling between Glasgow and Edinburgh Park to get a tram to Edinburgh Airport to go on holiday.

The way round it is to buy a ticket to the nearest station beyond your destination that does have an open return, in my case, Edinburgh Haymarket.

It meant that rather than buying single tickets from Glasgow to Edinburgh Park and back - the only type available if not making a day trip - for a total of £33.20, I could buy a Glasgow-Haymarket off-peak return for £22.50, saving £10.70.

Ms Dickie defended the anomaly by saying passengers wanted fares simplified.

She said: “Over the years, there have been various pieces of research undertaken, for example, by [official passenger watchdog] Transport Focus, highlighting that rail customers think the fares structure is too complex and should be simplified.

Return tickets can be cheaper than singles on some ScotRail one-way journeys. Picture: John Devlin | John Devlin/The Scotsman

“The message is clear that the industry should consider reducing the number of fares available for any given journey.

“We therefore need to strike the right balance between satisfying a genuine demand for long-distance type fares, such as open returns, with the need to make fares structures simpler for customers.”

3. Child fares

I have a Family & Friends Railcard, which offers one third off fares. But my daughter pointed out that when I’m just travelling with her, it might work out cheaper for us to use ScotRail’s Kids for a Quid offer, in which children travelling with an adult pay just £1 return.

4. Discounts for over-60s - if you’re lucky enough to live in these parts of Scotland

In Strathclyde, over-60s get half price travel within the region outwith peak hours - you just need to show your Saltire (National Entitlement) card.

The same age group in Fife pays just £1 single and £2 return for rail travel within that region outside the morning peak.

5. Savings for the under-19s

Young Scot (National Entitlement) card holders aged between 16 and 18 can get one third off most fares and 50 per cent off season tickets.

6. Super Off Peak Day Returns

These tickets, which are cheaper than off-peak fares, were reinstated along with the resumption of peak fares in September last year.

They are generally only available for travel after 11am, but with additional restrictions on some routes, such as Edinburgh-Glasgow, where you can’t use them from 3-8pm.

General advice

Tickets on some routes are cheaper if bought in advance, but in some cases these can restrict you to specific trains.

Passengers making regular journeys on the same route, but not every day could save with a Flexipass - 12 single tickets valid for 60 days - which saves 30 per cent compared to buying a separate ticket for each return journey.

A range of railcards are available for different ages and other groups, such as those living in the Highlands, while ScotRail also offers discounts for over-50s in its Club 50.

Fares charged by cross-Border train operators for journeys within Scotland may be cheaper than ScotRail’s prices, such as LNER between Aberdeen and Edinburgh, CrossCountry between Dundee and Edinburgh, and TransPennine Express between Lockerbie and Edinburgh.

Ms Dickie said: “We would encourage customers to take a look online at our ‘Find the Right Ticket for You’ web page, or visit your nearest staffed station and ask for advice.”