Friday June 12th 2026
ScotRail Managing Director, Joanne Maguire (centre), with ScotRail staff collecting Public Transport Operator of the Year award
Written by Midlothian View Reporter, Liam Eunson
ScotRail is celebrating after taking home two top prizes at the Scottish Transport Awards in Glasgow last night.
The train operator was named Public Transport Operator of the Year, while its work to improve on-train connectivity on rural routes won Most Innovative Transport Project of the Year.
The awards were presented at a prestigious ceremony, attended by more than 400 people from across Scotland’s transport sector, at the Glasgow Marriott Hotel.
Now in its 23rd year, the Scottish Transport Awards bring together senior leaders, operators, local authorities, and partners in the sector to recognise the people, projects, and organisations helping to improve transport across Scotland.
ScotRail’s Public Transport Operator of the Year award recognised a wide range of initiatives delivered including the removal of peak fares, continued investment in its train fleet, improvements to rural connectivity, and work to maintain high levels of customer satisfaction – which included a 93 per cent score in the recent independent Rail Customer Experience Survey (RCXS) update.
In the most recent reporting period, from 3 to 30 May, 91.1 per cent of ScotRail services met the Scottish Train Performance Measure (STPM), which records the percentage of trains arriving within five minutes of schedule.
The Most Innovative Transport Project of the Year award recognised ScotRail’s partnership with Clarus Networks to trial low-earth orbit satellite antenna on ScotRail trains along rural routes.
The project has transformed connectivity in remote locations, including along the Far North Line, delivering network speeds between three and six times faster than before, and supporting ScotRail’s ambition to turn some of the UK’s poorest on-train connectivity into some of the best.
ScotRail was also part of the winning partnership recognised in the Special Contribution to Transport Safety & Resilience category, alongside Network Rail, Transport Scotland, Scottish Fire and Rescue Service, Police Scotland, British Transport Police, Glasgow City Council, and other partners.
The award recognised the outstanding cross-industry response following the fire near Glasgow Central earlier this year, and the collective effort to restore services safely and quickly for customers.
Joanne Maguire, ScotRail Managing Director, said:
“This has been a fantastic night for ScotRail, and I’m delighted that we’ve collected two awards.
“To be named Public Transport Operator of the Year is a real recognition of the hard work, dedication, and commitment of our 6,000 colleagues across the network, who work day in, day out to deliver the best possible service for everyone who chooses to travel with us.
“We’re also delighted our efforts to improve connectivity on rural routes has been recognised. This innovative project is helping make journeys better for customers who live, work, and travel along the routes.
“These awards reflect the progress we are making as a railway, and we’ll continue to work hard to improve services, support our customers, and play our part in delivering a better transport network for Scotland.”
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