Travellers face more disruption this weekend as train services across Scotland are slashed while Network Rail staff take further strike action. 

Very limited services are being run on just 11 routes in the central belt, Fife, and the Borders. 

The walkout is part of an ongoing dispute between the Rail, Maritime and Transport (RMT) union and Network Rail over jobs, pay and conditions. 

ScotRail staff are not taking part in the UK-wide strike but many of the Network Rail staff involved work in rail safety, meaning a normal service is not possible. 

Where trains are running, they will only operate between 07:30 and 18:30. 

The latest industrial action - which will see four out of five ScotRail services cancelled - is set to affect people planning to attend the Edinburgh Festival, as well as a number of Scottish Premier League football matches. 

The latest strike action will also affect ScotRail's Sunday services as they are rolled out from a staggered start. 

The Herald:

The RMT union announced industrial action across the UK's railway network last month and 40,000 workers across Network Rail are expected to walk out again. 

RMT general secretary Mick Lynch has said members were determined to protect their pensions, pay, job security and working conditions. 

Network Rail has insisted it made a fair pay offer to try to end the dispute. The company said it was worth more than 5%, but this depends on workers accepting "modernising reforms". 

The RMT has warned that it does not go far enough - and that strike action will continue until a better offer is made. 

Gordon Martin, the union's regional organiser for Scotland, said he regretted the disruption the action would cause. 

He also told BBC Radio's Good Morning Scotland programme his members would rather be working than on a picket line. 

Mr Martin added: "This is not just about pay. This is about the conditions that people work in." 

ScotRail previously said it was "very unfortunate to see such widespread disruption across the whole of the Great Britain rail network".