SCOTRAIL have been accused of “acting like Scrooge” over their plans to scrap the Kids Go Free scheme after Christmas.

The operator will end the popular offer next month, with five- to 15-year-olds charged £1 instead of travelling for nothing on trains.

The rail operator has already been under fire this month for consistently poor performance, with a raft of cancellations, delays and overcrowded services on the Fife Circle, issues highlighted for the past 12 months by the Press Crush Hour campaign. 

The scheme enables an adult to take up to two children for free on return journeys, with the decision to scrap it slammed by Scottish Labour, who called the fare rise a “rip-off”.

The party’s transport spokesman, Colin Smyth MSP, said: “With Christmas less than a few weeks away, it’s sad to see bosses at ScotRail acting like Scrooge by taking free rail travel away from children across Scotland.

“The Kids Go Free scheme is a fantastic initiative which encourages families to use public transport and not be out of pocket for doing so.

“This rip-off fare rise will see passengers handing out even more money to a private company which is failing them time and time again.”

A ScotRail spokesman said: “We are committed to providing our customers with the opportunity to travel across our services and the Kids for a Quid offer is available on a wider range of adult tickets.

"This provides families with the opportunity to travel throughout the country, and take advantage of free entry to the many attractions that we have been able to secure.”