Ticketing woes for new Alloa line

There are currently no ticketing facilities at Alloa's new station

First Scotrail has said it is working to resolve ticketing problems for passengers travelling on Scotland's newest railway line.

Travellers on the Alloa to Stirling route have to buy tickets on the train or at the barrier in Stirling because there are no facilities at Alloa.

But the brevity of the 10-minute journey and the popularity of the route has resulted in lengthy queues.

Ochil MSP Keith Brown has called for a ticketing machine at Alloa.

The new stretch of track, which began passenger services last week, cost more than £85m.

Among those angered by the lack of facilities is the Earl of Mar and Kellie, a transport spokesman in the House of Lords, who lives in Alloa.

He has warned that travellers could be "put off" by the problems.

This is an unacceptable inconvenience on an otherwise fantastic service Keith Brown Ochil MSP

He said: "It is extremely pleasing that so many people are using the train, but I think Scotrail has been caught unawares by its success and I just hope the people who travel on the train will forgive them.

"On Saturday morning the train from Alloa to Glasgow was full. When we got to Stirling 80 people got off and about 60 had to queue to get a ticket from the two staff on the barrier.

"Some people had to queue 15 minutes or more because the station staff were simply overwhelmed."

'New customers'

Ochil's SNP MSP Keith Brown said he had written to First Scotrail calling on the company to install a ticketing machine.

He said: "I was on the first train that ran on the 19th and I saw then that even that early on a Monday morning it was too busy for the conductor to be able to sell tickets to everyone in the 10 minutes before arriving in Stirling.

"I have argued over the years that this should be a more substantial station, ideally with staffing or at the very least with a ticket machine.

"The success of the Stirling-Alloa link that we are seeing just strengthens that argument. This is an unacceptable inconvenience on an otherwise fantastic service."

A spokesman for First Scotrail said: "It is good news that so many people want to use the service and underpins the growing demand for rail travel.

"We are aware that the demand has resulted in ticketing issues, and you can be assured we are looking to resolve these for the benefit of our many new customers."

He added: "Tickets can be bought online through our website."