A new ScotRail announcements voice is now being heard on ScotRail’s Class 380 electric trains as they get ready to start passenger services on the East Kilbride line for the first time, as set out in a ScotRail news release.

This is reported by the railway transport news portal Railway Supply.

New ScotRail announcements voice for Class 380 services
ScotRail

Why ScotRail is changing its onboard announcements?

ScotRail is updating its automated onboard announcements, replacing the existing “Iona” announcements with a new set recorded by ScotRail employee Vannessa Sloan. The move away from “Iona” has also been discussed by Railway Supply. Sloan’s voice is already used for real-time announcements to passengers at Paisley, so many customers will recognise it.

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Class 380 recordings with ReadSpeaker and TTS

For the new Class 380 ScotRail onboard announcements, Sloan completed 18 separate recording sessions with technology company ReadSpeaker. The material ranged from train announcements and station names—some with difficult pronunciation—to security messages, as reported by RailAdvent.

ScotRail noted that producing automated announcements for use on trains and at stations involves thousands of words and sentences. Using text-to-speech (TTS) technology, the operator says the messages can be delivered clearly and correctly, while still sounding natural for customers listening onboard.

Rollout plans across Scotland in 2026

The announcements recorded for the Class 380 units will also be rolled out across other trains in Scotland in 2026. ScotRail has used automated announcements for many years, but says the updated voice will give the network and its services a more modern feel.

ScotRail Customer Operations Director Phil Campbell said it was fitting for the new voice to come from within the organisation, adding that its people are at the heart of what it does. He described Sloan as a trusted and familiar voice for customers at stations and said ScotRail is pleased her voice is now part of the announcements used on Class 380 trains.

Campbell added that, working with ReadSpeaker, ScotRail has created an announcement system that is modern, reliable and ethically produced. He also said an automated voice gives ScotRail more control over announcements, helps maintain consistency for customers, and provides flexibility to make changes at short notice.

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