Only Labour can be trusted to end the “scandalous” private ScotRail franchise, bring the railways into public ownership and build a public transport system fit for the future, Richard Leonard has said.

The Scottish Labour leader will join rail workers and transport campaigners at Glasgow Queen Street station at 7.30am on Monday to distribute leaflets to commuters highlighting Labour’s plan to fix public transport. In October Scottish Labour revealed that 75,000 trains had been cancelled – an average of 50 a day – since the start of Dutch state operator Abellio’s ScotRail franchise.

Mr Leonard said: “MSPs had the chance to end the ScotRail franchise just two months ago – but the Tories and the SNP joined forces to vote down Scottish Labour’s motion.

“ScotRail passengers know that the failed privatisation experiment must end now. Labour is the only party going into this election with a plan to bring our railways back into public ownership and build a transport system fit for the future.”

At 11am on Monday, Labour MP Paul Sweeney will be joined by workers from the Caley railway works in Springburn, to protest the continued closure of the site.

Mr Leonard added: “It is a disgrace that the Caley, once a jewel in the crown of Britain’s railway infrastructure, was allowed to close earlier this year. The SNP’s managed decline of Scotland’s industry has thrown skilled workers onto the dole queue, and left Scotland sending trains for repair south of the border.

“We need a publicly-owned railway network with the capacity to build and maintain its infrastructure and rolling stock.”