SCOTRAIL has has recorded its worst reliability performance in more than 20 years.

Office of Road and Rail said that the train company's reliability analysis which studies cancellations and significant lateness between April and June this year was the worst it has been since records began in 1997/98.

It said that problems linked to severe weather had risen by nearly three-and-a-half times year on year.

Some 2.9% of all services were judged to have resulted in “significant disruption to at least some passengers” when cancellations and significant lateness were measured.

This was 34% higher in the first quarter of 2018-19 than in the same period of 2017-18 – with this mainly due to a 347% increase in cancellations and delays attributed to severe weather.

The Herald: Network Rail engineers are to be balloted for strikes in a row over pay. Jonathan Brady/PA Wire

Some 90.3 of trains arrived at their destination within five minutes of the planned time in the first quarter of the year.

The analysis reveals that punctuality failures attributed to Network Rail, which is responsible for Scotland's railway infrastructure rose by 51% over the year. Failings blamed on Network Rail’s management of the network rose by 56%.

Labour transport spokesman Colin Smyth branded the figures an “outrage”

He hit out: “ScotRail’s punctuality is now at its worst level for 13 years, while reliability is now at its worst level since records began back in 1997.”

“Rail passengers across Scotland will rightly be wondering what else has to happen before SNP Transport Secretary Michael Matheson sorts this mess out.”

The Herald: Alex Hynes could not give a firm date for the new high-speed trains. Photograph: PA

ScotRail Alliance managing director Alex Hynes said: “The fact that more than nine out of ten ScotRail trains met their punctuality target is encouraging, and a sign that the efforts we are making to improve the service our customers receive are paying off.

“But we know that there is more to do, and we share customers’ frustrations when things go wrong," he said.

"That’s why Network Rail is investing billions of pounds in improved infrastructure and ScotRail is spending hundreds of millions of pounds on new and upgraded trains. It’s all part of our plan to build the best railway Scotland has ever had.”