Communities South of Ayr deserve reassurance they won’t be cut off for months by another rail line closure. That’s the view of MSP Brian Whittle, who’s challenging Scotrail and Transport Scotland to be better prepared for further problems because of the Ayr Station Hotel.
With teams of workers currently cladding the dangerous building in scaffolding, South Ayrshire Council hopes to reduce the size of the exclusion zone around the building enough to allow train services south of the town to be restored. But Brian wants rail bosses to start planning now to avoid another loss of service if the situation changes.
South Scotland MSP Brian has written to the Managing Director of Scotrail, Alex Hynes, and Bill Reeve, Head of Rail at Transport Scotland, asking them to examine the idea of creating a temporary station at Ayr’s Townhead depot that can be called into service if Ayr station can’t be used to run trains south.
Brian Whittle MSP said:
“Whatever the final decision on the station hotel is, it’s quite possible demolition or repair works will require further restrictions to rail service. If that happens, we need to be better prepared.
The current replacement bus and taxi services are at best a stop-gap measure. Commuting on the A77, particularly south of Ayr, isn’t an easy journey. If we can avoid more people being forced to drive that road every day, or travel by replacement bus, then we should.
It’s common sense for Scotrail and Transport Scotland to consider other options if it becomes clear there will be further long term disruption at Ayr Station. Initial discussions with Scotrail suggest there would be some hurdles to overcome before a temporary service could be run from Townhead but it’s certainly not impossible.
Every effort should be made to provide the communities who rely on Maybole, Girvan, Barrhill and Stranraer train stations with some level of train service if there’s going to be further prolonged disruption. “
