ScotRail has confirmed additional late trains will run during the Edinburgh festivals as more than two million people are expected to flock to the capital.
Extra carriages will also be added to key trains travelling to Edinburgh from Tweedbank, Fife, Perth, Dundee, Stirling, Dunblane, and Glasgow Central throughout the event.
Visitors will be able to travel between the capital and Glasgow after midnight as the Edinburgh International Festival, The Fringe and the Tattoo get kicked off.
It comes as the Fringe is set to return with a full programme for the first time since the pandemic onset in 2020. This year will also mark the 75th anniversary of the event.
Festival-goers can expect thousands of shows across 250 venues in their first fully-operational year since 2019.
The nationalised train operator will be operating additional late-night services from Edinburgh Waverley to Glasgow Queen Street via Falkirk High from Friday, August 5 until Sunday, August 28.
An additional train will run from North Berwick to Edinburgh from August 4 to August 14 to help people travel from the Fringe by the Sea.
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The additional late-night trains are:
- 12.03am Edinburgh Waverley to Glasgow Queen Street via Falkirk High
- 12.33am Edinburgh Waverley to Glasgow Queen Street via Falkirk High
- 12.01am North Berwick to Edinburgh Waverley
While ScotRail has returned to its regular timetable, RMT strikes could cause further travel turmoil during August.
The Union of Rail, Maritime and Transport (RMT) confirmed plans for workers to walk our on Thursday, August 18 and Saturday, August 20 amid a dispute with Network Rail.
While the issues does not involve ScotRail staff, if the industrial action goes ahead services are likely to be scaled back significantly.
Disruption to ScotRail services would not be confined to the days of strike action themselves but will also affect the day before and the days following them.
David Simpson, ScotRail service delivery director, warned services are going to be "extremely busy".
He said: “This year’s Edinburgh Festivals are set to be special as they celebrate their 75th anniversary, and we’re thrilled to be able to, once again, play our part in making it a success.
“We’ll be doing all we can to help showcase Edinburgh, and Scotland, to the world, including running extra late-night services and adding more seats to trains to get people to and from the events.
“Our trains are going be extremely busy, so we’re encouraging everyone visiting the capital to plan their journey in advance, and to buy their train tickets before they board using our mTicket system on our mobile app.
“Festivalgoers should be aware of the potential of significant disruption during the festivals due to planned strike action by Network Rail members of the RMT trade union.
"We’ll let customers know our plans and travel advice in the coming weeks, should this planned strike action go ahead.”
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