Passengers sign petition to scrap Abellio rail contract

Rail passengers have hit back at Dutch firm Abellio with an online petition calling for the firm to be stripped of their contract attracting more than 14,000 signatures.

14,000 people have signed a petition. Picture; Jane Barlow

The petition which was set up online calls on the Scottish ­Government to take action against ­Abellio over the delays and cancellations.

Humza Yousaf is expected to put forward a case in parliament this week detailing some of the experiences suffered by passengers.

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The firm, who took over the service in 2015, have already been fined £1.5 million for poor services.

However, the deal to operate Scotland’s railway, which is worth around £7 billion over ten years, can be scrapped at the halfway point, leading for calls to axe Abellio from 2020.

It is estimated that currently, Abellio is making around £1 million per month as part of their Scotrail deal.

Many have demanded that Transport Humza Yousaf take action.

Scottish Labour transport spokesman Neil Bibby said: “The number of signatures on this petition shows just how disgruntled passengers are with ScotRail services.

“It is time for the minister to explain to passengers what improvements he is going to make and when these improvements will take place.

“This must serve as a ­wake-up call to Transport Minister Humza Yousaf.”

Humza Yousaf said: “ScotRail’s performance this year has not been at the level the ­Scottish Government expects, which is why I have taken decisive action in calling for the operators to deliver an improvement plan outlining how they will improve passenger services going forward.

“Transport Scotland and Scottish ­ministers will be working closely with the franchisee to monitor delivery of this plan and ensure their targets are met.”