Fair Rail Campaign

We did it!

After 2 years of campaigning and thanks to your support, a pilot project to extend free rail travel for companions of Blind Persons Concessionary Travel cardholders has been agreed in the Scottish Government's Fair Fares Review in March 2024. This is a great win for the campaign and another step towards accessible train travel for all.

What's been happening?

Currently, there is no national policy for rail travel across Scotland which entitles free rail travel for the companions of blind and partially sighted people. With different concessionary and companion schemes in different areas, we heard first-hand how this is causing confusion to both passengers and rail staff.  

We want to make rail travel better for those living with sight loss. That’s why we’re calling for a new national rail travel policy for Scotland, like that of the free bus travel scheme. We're delighted this has been considered and a pilot project is being developed by Transport Scotland.

What's next?

Thanks to our strong campaigning, we're closer than ever to achieving equitable rail travel. We will seek to work closely with Transport Scotland and ScotRail to develop the pilot scheme.

If you have personal experience of issues around rail travel get in touch with us at policy@sightscotland.org.uk to share your story.