FIFE commuters are being warned of disruption with the introduction of a temporary timetable which will start tomorrow (Wednesday).

ScotRail say the amended timetable will provide greater certainty and reliability for customers.

The changes come amid a pay dispute which saw a formal pay offer being made on Friday which was rejected by rail trade unions ASLEF, RMT, TSSA, and Unite.

The rail operator say the temporary measures are a result of the ongoing impact of fewer train drivers than normal currently being available for overtime or rest day working.

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While ScotRail is currently recruiting 160 new drivers – the highest level ever – each year to improve resilience, some rest day working and overtime is still needed to deliver a normal timetable. This has historically been the case in the railway and is replicated in other train operators across Britain.

Reducing the timetable temporarily will mean ScotRail is able to provide a more reliable service for customers instead of late-notice cancellations.

While the times of first or last trains on more than half of all routes will remain unchanged, there will be changes in the number of services provided during the morning and evening peak times – for example, where there are normally four trains per hour in the peak, this will reduce to a half hourly service, which is the same as the off-peak.

Customers are strongly advised to check their journey before travelling by using the ScotRail website or app.

Refunds are available to customers for booked journeys which are affected by the temporary timetable with no additional admin fee. Alternatively, customers can use their tickets to travel on an alternative service, or the day before or two days after their planned journey.

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ScotRail say they remain fully committed to further talks to reach agreement on a pay offer that delivers value for the taxpayer and a fair pay increase for employees.

Mark Ilderton, ScotRail Service Delivery Director, said: “We are very sorry to customers for the disruption to services. We know that customers want certainty and reliability, which is why we are introducing a temporary timetable, in place of late-notice cancellations.

“We are operating services which the vast majority of customers use and are still using all the available trains in our fleet so customers can continue to travel.

“We want to resolve the pay dispute with the trade unions and remain fully committed to further discussions.

“We’re asking customers to check their journey on our website or mobile app, as train times will have changed.”