"One-in-seven rail services will be cut on Avanti West Coast's busiest routes following a government request to reduce expenditure, the operator has said. About 38 daily weekday services will be removed from timetables during a six-week period from 20 July. The company usually operates 248 daily services on the affected routes, which connect London Euston with Birmingham, Liverpool and Manchester, via the West Coast Main Line."
"Avanti West Coast said it had proposed removing some services with lower demand in response to a request from the Department for Transport (DfT) to cut costs. A spokesperson for the DfT said: "This will save taxpayers money while still meeting passenger demand for seats." The spokesperson also said: "The Secretary of State has accepted Avanti's short-term proposals to amend its weekday summer timetable, when passenger numbers are considerably lower and many trains run with large numbers of empty seats.""
"Avanti West Coast - a joint venture between FirstGroup (70%) and Italian state operator Trenitalia (30%) - predicted the move would cause minimum disruption to passengers and not reduce revenues. All train services operated under DfT contracts are being transferred to public ownership. But companies such as Avanti West Coast - which has yet to lose its services - have their finances heavily influenced by the DfT. This is because of contracts introduced in March 2020 at the start of the Covid-19 pandemic."
""From 20 July to 28 August we will be operating an amended timetable between London and Birmingham, Liverpool and Manchester on weekdays. "To ensure minimal impact to those travelling between the affected dates, these changes will only affect routes on which we operate more than one train per hour - during typically less busy periods of the day - maximising alternative journey options.""
About 38 daily weekday rail services will be removed from Avanti West Coast timetables for a six-week period starting 20 July. The affected routes connect London Euston with Birmingham, Liverpool, and Manchester via the West Coast Main Line. Avanti West Coast typically operates 248 daily services on these routes. The operator proposed service reductions with lower demand after a Department for Transport request to cut costs. The Department for Transport said the changes will save taxpayers money while still meeting passenger demand for seats. Avanti West Coast expects minimum disruption, predicting no revenue reduction, and will amend timetables only on routes with more than one train per hour during typically less busy times.
Read at www.bbc.com
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