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A train service transporting daily travelers from London from Manchester is set to operate without passengers for around five months following a determination by the railway oversight authority.

A verdict by the rail regulatory body means the 07:00 GMT service operated by Avanti West Coast from Manchester's main station to the capital will continue to run but will exclusively serve to transport employees from mid-December.

An operator spokesperson stated they were "let down" with the decision, which would "clearly impact those passengers who regularly take these trains".

An regulatory official indicated the judgment was based on "robust evidence" from the infrastructure manager to prevent potential operational issues on the key rail corridor.

Network Rail declined to comment.

Details of the Service Changes

The fast service, which reaches the capital in less than 120 minutes, will still depart from Manchester station at 7:00 AM on four weekdays, but will not open to the public.

It will, instead, transport company employees from London from Manchester when the updated schedule takes effect on December 15th.

The decision implies the service could run for over a hundred journeys without fare-paying customers on board.

An Avanti West Coast spokesperson confirmed they were displeased with the ORR's determination not to grant operational permissions from December for several daily trains they presently run, such as the 07:00 express train from London from Manchester.

The ORR also required a weekend train which currently runs from London from Holyhead to end at Crewe, they added.

"This will clearly impact those passengers who currently rely on these services," they said.

"Nonetheless, we will continue to provide even more services across our network from the beginning of the winter schedule, featuring further additional trains on our Liverpool route."

The spokesperson verified that the trains being removed were:

• 7:00 AM GMT: Manchester Piccadilly to London Euston (Monday to Friday)
• 12:52 PM GMT: Blackpool station – London Euston (Weekdays)
• 09:39 GMT: Euston station – Blackpool station (Weekdays)
• 7:32 PM GMT: Chester – London Euston (Weekdays)
• 5:53 PM GMT: Holyhead – London Euston ends at Crewe (Sundays)

Oversight Rationale

An regulatory spokesperson explained: "Our ruling on the Manchester-London train was grounded in robust evidence submitted by the infrastructure operator that introducing trains within 'buffer' slots on the main rail line would have a negative effect on reliability.

"It was determined that this service would operate within one of those paths. If the operator runs the train as empty coaching stock (ECS), ECS can be operated with greater flexibility (held back or redirected) than a booked passenger service.

"This can assist with service reliability and operational restoration during incidents."

The ORR indicated Avanti was earlier granted the right to operate this service from spring 2025 for the duration of one timetable period only.

This was on the basis that First Lumo's Scottish trains were not operating at the time but the First Lumo services are anticipated to start operating during the winter 2025 schedule update.

The regulatory body added that under the new timetable, new open access train services, run by the competing operator to Stirling, Scotland, were due to start.