An environmental protest is to be led by transport workers who have accused the Scottish Government of a “betrayal” of their Cop26 climate ambitions with cuts to public services.
Rail ferry and energy workers will demonstrate in response to soaring train ticket prices, with the cost of travelling on public transport rising higher than car journeys, and cuts to infrastructure such as ticket offices.
Protesters will march from Edinburgh Waverley railway station to Bute House, the First Minister’s official residence, from 11am on Monday, according to the RMT trade union that has planned the demonstration.
The union says Nicola Sturgeon’s Government is abandoning promises to tackle the climate emergency by cutting services and privatisation, including with ScotWind contracts going to fossil fuel firms including Shell and BP.
RMT general secretary Mick Lynch said: “Cop26 started only three months ago but already the lofty rhetoric about fighting climate change seems a distant memory as we witness a betrayal of ambitions by the SNP and Green Government to move towards a greener Scotland.
“Instead of cutting climate change the Government is cutting rail services and ticket offices, threatening the privatisation of our lifeline ferry services, and doing far too little to protect the livelihoods of energy workers and the vital service they provide.
“As the country approaches the local government elections in May, this protest will be the start of a concerted campaign to persuade politicians to protect these services and jobs which are so vital to our local communities.”
Rail fares across Scotland rose by almost 4% last week. with former transport minister Graeme Dey admitting the increase is “unwelcome” but insisting it is necessary because of the impact of the pandemic.
From January 24 regulated fares at both peak and off-peak times increased by 3.8%, a rise determined by the level of the Retail Price Index (RPI) .
While the cost of off-peak tickets has gone up by a lower amount in previous years, the latest increase applies to all services.
We know that there is much work to be done in encouraging people back to public transport if we are to achieve our net zero targets
A Transport Scotland spokeswoman said: “We know that we need to take bold action to tackle the climate emergency and have recently published our routemap to achieve a 20% reduction in car kilometres by 2030, a world-leading target that makes the scale of our ambition clear.
“In addition, the Strategic Transport Projects Review (STPR2) recommendations put a clear focus on the decarbonisation of the remainder of the rail network and the maintenance, upgrade and safe operation of our existing assets.
“Both the Scottish Government and its partners are committed to providing our island and remote rural communities with the services they need to achieve sustainability and economic growth.
“We have announced investment of £580 million in ports and vessels to support and improve ferry services over the next five years. Our continued support throughout the pandemic has seen a record £4.85 billion investment to maintain and enhance Scotland’s railway, with circa £1 billion via the Emergency Measures Agreements for ScotRail and the Caledonian Sleeper.
“We know that there is much work to be done in encouraging people back to public transport if we are to achieve our net zero targets.
“Our ongoing Fair Fares review is looking at the range of discounts and concessionary schemes available on public transport, and informing the development of a sustainable and integrated approach to future fares.”
