Manchester to Leeds more than TWICE Glasgow to Edinburgh at any time and overall cheapest rail fares in UK but BBC Scotland headline an advertising error

Professor John Robertson OBA

At lease some of the staff at Pacific Quay must be thinking, red-faced, this morning – ‘Is this all we’ve got for the top story?’

ScotRail has been ordered to withdraw claims that it offers the “cheapest tickets” on its website after a watchdog ruled this was misleading. In August, adverts on its journey planner claimed it was “unbeatable on price” and customers should “book direct for the best price”. The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) upheld a complaint finding that ScotRail had no evidence to back up those claims.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cr7lkdzg3gzo

Only in the third last paragraph, of course:

The ruling came as part of a wider piece of work related to online ads in the rail industry concerning “lowest” or “cheapest” price claims, with ruling against Abellio Greater Anglia and mytrainticket.co.uk also published.

Here’s a better story:

Since September 2025, if not before, after the Scottish Government removed peak fares, rail travel in Scotland has been significantly cheaper than elsewhere in the UK. For example the shorter (40miles) Manchester to Leeds can cost up to £40 while the Glasgow to Edinburgh (50 miles) is now £16.80!

Overall, for peak-hour commuters or flexible travellers on comparable English routes, you’d pay 20-50% more than the equivalent ScotRail flat fare (no restrictions). Scotland’s system is uniquely simpler and cheaper for anytime travel—no other UK operator has scrapped peak pricing permanently. https://x.com/i/grok?conversation=2003741407236808718

Sources:

On ScotRail’s permanent removal of peak fares (from 1 September 2025)

On open-access budget operators (Lumo, Hull Trains, Grand Central) offering the lowest Advance fares on competitive routes

5 thoughts on “Manchester to Leeds more than TWICE Glasgow to Edinburgh at any time and overall cheapest rail fares in UK but BBC Scotland headline an advertising error”

  1. £Billions wasted on HS2. Historical lack of investment in Scotland means journey times take twice as long by comparison. To cut journey times in the UK, journey times should be cut in Scotland. More investment. By Westminster. Instead of the North/south divide. London S/E congested. The North empty.

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  2. Let’s be honest , if ScotRail , CalMac , the Scottish NHS , etc…were in a Scotland governed by the unionist Labour/Con. , there would be a plethora of Good News stories about these institutions with nary a negative thought to trouble the media . We would be constantly reminded of our good luck that these services were provided for us by the largesse of the UK/English taxpayer .

    Imagine the reactions of the English people if the Media reported FAIRLY on the situation in Scotland and exposed the deficiencies of their services compared to our Scottish ones?

    But that won’t happen ! Instead they are fed titbits of negativity suggesting that the Scots are existing in a morass of poverty , crumbling services and knee-deep in the corruption of an SNP Government , which inexplicably wins election after election .

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  3. You’re not wrong mj. But as all of us know who read this website, that any good news about Scotland, whether it’s about public or private services, will never be published, or broadcast, by the M.S.M. In particular, if we are performing better than any of the other three nations, most of all, England. Oh no, that would never do, not the greatest country ever in the history of this planet, ruled over by the most benevolent family in the history of man/womankind, and governed by the most honest and generous people who ever existed, only concerned with caring for the most vulnerable in our society. And about to elect a political company, headed by an even more generous leader, who will do wonders for our wellbeing, and standard of living. Aye right. The sooner we ditch the Saxe-Coburg-Gotha’s, and Westminster, it will be better for all of us. Well, maybe not for those whose only aim in life is to bend over backwords to those they apparently see as their betters, and be awarded either gold, or supposed awards, for their sterling efforts to keep us as a colony of Greater England. And a Merry Xmas to you all.

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    1. “…that any good news about Scotland, whether it’s about public or private services, will never be published, or broadcast, by the M.S.M. ” is only missing ‘under James Cook’s watch ‘, who rather fits your final paragraph…

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  4. Well at least we know the staff and BBC Scotland have fallen through the over-scraped barrel and are staring up at the arse of their Director.

    What grinds my gears most over this arrant nonsense “ScotRail’s ‘cheapest tickets’ claim is misleading, watchdog rules ” is that your actual travellers learn bugger all from https://archive.ph/MnGlr – It’s in much the same mould as ‘troubled hospital’ or ‘ageing CalMac fleet’, nobody gives a damn about it unless they watch BBC Scotland or read the papers who pretty much have their stories dictated by James Cook’s output.

    Neither Sarah Smith nor James Cook were ‘Miss Congeniality’ nor ‘Impartiality’, but clearly that’s what they were paid to do.

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