The UK and Scottish Governments should take action to increase the amount of good transported by rail, Scottish Conservatives say.
The party's spokesman Graham Simpson said a reduction in rail freight traffic in Scotland of a quarter in the last 18 months shows the need for an urgent government response
He's published a report on the state of rail freight in Scotland which calls for track capacity to be improved and for investment in freight infrastructure.
Graham Simpson MSP said: “Recent trends for the rail freight sector in Scotland are not good. Figures suggest that the volume of freight moved by rail in Scotland has fallen by 25% in the past 18 months. I am proposing some ways to improve and develop this important but often overlooked aspect of our transport network.
“The Scottish government withdrew its £700,00 budget line for the Mode Shift Revenue Support grant this year. While that is currently being covered by the UK government, the costs of rail freight are far too high. The Scottish government should fund and preserve this grant and support new rail freight services with the revenue and capital costs of equipment.
“We also need more infrastructure for rail freight in Scotland, especially beyond the central belt. Further capacity planning on key routes is required to increase flow and better use could be made of existing infrastructure, including under-utilised terminals.
“The Scottish government should be taking a more proactive role to support and co-ordinate joint working within the rail freight sector. This should include engaging with logistics companies and operators to map out new traffics and demonstrating leadership by putting more public sector goods onto rail. The frame of reference of the Scottish Freight Joint Board could also be expanded to offer information to industry and examine possible opportunities.
“If we want to reach net zero and move goods around the country more efficiently, then we need to get more onto rail. While setting targets is one piece of this puzzle, the Scottish government needs to take more strategic action to do this. My report sets out some ways that this could be achieved.”
