Peak rail fare abolition to be extended by three months by First Minister John Swinney

dailyrecord.co.uk:

John Swinney will throw Scots a cost of living lifeline by extending the abolition of peak rail fares.Passengers will receive a summer boost as the trial was set to come to a halt at the end of June.Peak prices - roughly double the cost of normal fares - were scrapped in October and were a key plank of the Bute House Agreement with the Greens.But the Greens were kicked out of Government by Humza Yousaf and supporters of the policy worried peak fares would return in July.Trade unions warned scrapping the trial would be a double whammy on workers after regular fares were hiked by an inflation-busting 8.7 per cent in April.If the rise was applied to restored peak fares, a peak-time return from Glasgow to Edinburgh would have jumped to around £31.40 - up from £16.20.However, the Record can reveal the new First Minister will announce the pilot is continuing for another three months.He is expected to unveil the plan at an event at Edinburgh’s Waverley station this morning.A Government source said: “The FM has listened to the extremely positive reception that the peak fares removal pilot has had so far. "Extending the pilot to September will allow more people to benefit from this bold policy and save hundreds of pounds on their commute - something especially important during a cost of living crisis.”Swinney has promised to tackle the cost of living crisis and extending the pilot is part of his plan.After becoming First Minister, Swinney talked up the benefits of the policy but left open his options.He said at the time: "I have to be mindful of the fact that everything has to be paid for.

The peak rail fares pilot has been a very, very good measure."It's been very effective. We obviously have to look at the resources involved in