THE push to increase train services from Wemyss Bay to Glasgow has been given a boost according to the area's MSP.

Stuart McMillan believes the Scottish Government's decision to take over the running of the country’s rail franchise could be a step towards paving the way for more regular services.

He said: “I have been calling for an extra hourly rail service on the Wemyss Bay line, which could be supported by reintroducing a second platform at Port Glasgow Station – as my SNP colleague Councillor Chris Curley is proposing.

“However, the fractured nature of rail policy within the UK makes bold proposals like this challenging to deliver, given that the infrastructure at Port Glasgow is managed by Network Rail, while the rail services themselves are managed by ScotRail.

“The SNP have long argued that the future structure of Scottish railways should be in Scotland’s hands - It is well beyond time that the Tory UK Government listened and devolved rail powers to Holyrood."