– More than 384,000 people passed through Edinburgh Waverley station during the second weekend of the festivals
– Increase of 8 per cent compared to the equivalent weekend in 2016
– More services, late-night trains and extra carriages compared to the regular timetable
The number of people passing through Edinburgh Waverley station during the second weekend of the August Edinburgh festivals increased by 8 per cent compared to 2016, the ScotRail Alliance confirmed today.
More than 384,000 people passed through Edinburgh Waverley station between Friday 11 August and Sunday 13 August. This is an 8 per cent increase compared to the 355,000 people who passed through Waverley during the second weekend of the festivals in 2016.
It was revealed last week that more than 340,000 people passed through Waverley during the first weekend of the festivals this year, highlighting the scale of the operation being undertaken by the ScotRail Alliance.
Customers are encouraged to plan their journeys in advance by visiting www.scotrail.co.uk, downloading the ScotRail app or buying a ticket at the station before boarding.
Highlights of the ScotRail Alliance’s August festivals programme include:
– Additional late night trains between Edinburgh Waverley and Glasgow Queen Street (via Falkirk High) operating daily, departing from Edinburgh at 00.01 and 00.30.
– A major increase in the number of carriages between Glasgow and Edinburgh, particularly Friday to Sunday, both via the Airdrie/Bathgate line and via Falkirk High
– Many extra carriages between Edinburgh and Fife on Friday evenings and all day Saturday and Sunday
Juliet Donnachie, station manager at Edinburgh Waverley, said:
“These figures show the scale of the operation the ScotRail Alliance is running during the Edinburgh festivals.
“Our station teams at Waverley and across the whole network are working flat out to get customers to and from Edinburgh hassle free. The festivals are a great advert for the city and the country as a whole, and we are proud to play our part in making them a success.
“We know that our trains will continue to be very busy during the festivals, so we are encouraging all customers to plan their journeys in advance.”
– First weekend of Edinburgh festivals saw 340,000 people pass through Edinburgh Waverley station
– Customers are urged to plan their journeys in advance
– More services, late-night trains and extra carriages compared to the regular timetable
More than 340,000 people passed through Edinburgh Waverley station during the first weekend of the August Edinburgh festivals, the ScotRail Alliance confirmed today.
The number of people who passed through the station between Friday 4 August and Sunday 6 August shows the scale of the operation undertaken by the ScotRail Alliance to help the festivals run smoothly.
Looking ahead to this weekend (11-13 August), the ScotRail Alliance expects this to be the busiest weekend of the festivals. Customers are encouraged to plan their journeys in advance by visiting www.scotrail.co.uk, downloading the ScotRail app or buying a ticket at the station before boarding.
Highlights of the ScotRail Alliance’s August festivals programme include:
– Additional late night trains between Edinburgh Waverley and Glasgow Queen Street (via Falkirk High) operating daily, departing from Edinburgh at 00.01 and 00.30.
– A major increase in the number of carriages between Glasgow and Edinburgh, particularly Friday to Sunday, both via the Airdrie/Bathgate line and via Falkirk High
– Many extra carriages between Edinburgh and Fife on Friday evenings and all day Saturday and Sunday
– An extra service running after midnight between North Berwick and Edinburgh, getting people to and from the Fringe by the Sea
The ScotRail Alliance’s Operations Director Perry Ramsey said:
“Once again Edinburgh’s festival season proves to be a huge draw for visitors coming to enjoy the events.
“We’re proud to play our part in getting people to and from Edinburgh. Where possible, we’ve cut back on any non-essential train engineering or maintenance, so that we have the maximum number of carriages available for use over this busiest weekend.
“We know that our trains will be very busy, so we are encouraging all customers to plan their journeys in advance by visiting scotrail.co.uk, downloading the ScotRail app, or buying a ticket at the station before boarding the train.
“We want everyone to enjoy their day, and smooth and safe travel to and from Edinburgh is all part of that.”
– More services, late-night trains and extra carriages compared to the regular timetable
– Trains will be very busy, so people are urged to plan their journeys in advance
The ScotRail Alliance is urging people going to Edinburgh’s August festivals to plan their journeys in advance, as it announced more services, late-night trains and extra carriages for the three-week extravaganza.
Thousands of people will travel to Edinburgh for the events, which means services will be much busier than normal.
Highlights of the ScotRail Alliance’s August festivals programme include:
– Additional late night trains between Edinburgh Waverley and Glasgow Queen Street (via Falkirk High) operating daily, departing from Edinburgh at 00.01 and 00.30.
– A major increase in the number of carriages between Glasgow and Edinburgh, particularly Friday to Sunday, both via the Airdrie/Bathgate line and via Falkirk High
– Many extra carriages between Edinburgh and Fife on Friday evenings and all day Saturday and Sunday
– An extra service running after midnight between North Berwick and Edinburgh, getting people to and from the Fringe by the Sea
Perry Ramsey, Operations Director at the ScotRail Alliance, said:
“Edinburgh’s August festivals are one of the highlights of the year, attracting talent and tourists from all over the world. It’s a great chance to showcase the very best of Scotland.
“The ScotRail Alliance will once again do everything it can to help the events run smoothly. We will put on more services, late-night trains and extra carriages compared to our regular timetable.
“But despite these extra services and carriages we are putting on, trains will be very, very busy during the festivals. Thousands of people will be travelling to and from Edinburgh to enjoy the great attractions the festivals have to offer.
“To make journeys as hassle free as possible we are urging passengers to plan their journeys in advance by visiting scotrail.co.uk, downloading the ScotRail app and buying a ticket before they board.
“We are also encouraging passengers to use all the available services between Edinburgh and Glasgow, including Glasgow Central, and the high and low levels at Glasgow Queen Street.”
Comedian Craig Hill, who will perform his Someone’s Gonna Get Kilt show at the Edinburgh International Conference Centre (EICC), said:
“It’s very exciting to have the Edinburgh Festival Fringe happening again, especially with the 70th anniversary celebration.
“The city gets packed with people from all over the world enjoying the shows and the atmosphere, so of course the streets as well as the trains will be very busy.
“Make sure you plan your Fringe experience and your journeys in advance, so it’s all nice and easy and make sure you have loads of fun, fun, fun!”
Shona McCarthy, Chief Executive of the Edinburgh Festival Fringe Society, said:
“We are delighted that the ScotRail Alliance is providing extra rail services to and from Edinburgh during August.
“These additional services will make it easier for people to enjoy the Fringe and Edinburgh’s other major festivals, and also comfortably get back to their homes right across Scotland’s central belt.”
Impact Arts is delighted to present our first feature length play at Edinburgh’s world famous Fringe Festival! Our home in Leith, The Printworks, is an official Fringe venue (no. 404!) and for three days will play host to a sparkling commedia dell’arte called ‘After Aria’. The play has been devised by young people on Impact Arts’ Creative Pathways Programme.
The 18 week theatre arts workshops for 16-19 year olds who are not in employment, education or training, are split into three groups: Costume Design, Set Design and Performance. The young people in the performance group came together to write a play based around the idea that a young woman named Aria, the only daughter of Lord Pantalone and Lady Signora, is getting married. The audience are cordially invited to her engagement party…
Taking place in the garden of a wealthy merchant in Venice, the set of the site-specific play has been designed by the Set Design group. The players in this Renaissance street theatre will be clothed in Mediterranean garb with elaborate masks created by the Costume Design team.
The young theatre aficionados are excitedly anticipating the opening show:
“I have made a mask and kimono and I’m currently making a skirt which will all be used in the Fringe performance. I feel proud for being part of something and for making costumes which will be used in the After Aria show for everyone to see.”
Emma, Costume Design Group (Creative Pathways)
Tickets are only £8 or £7 concession and are available here. Please see the flyer above for the showtimes and location!
