Two months of misery for West Coast line as Avanti cuts services

Train operator Avanti is quietly cancelling hundreds of services between now and the new year, risking a repeat of the travel chaos suffered by passengers travelling between London, Birmingham and Manchester.

Ministers have signed off Saturday timetable reductions because of driver shortages, according to industry sources.

Earlier this month, Avanti said it was culling up to half its Saturday services between December 9 and December 30. But The Sunday Times can reveal that the company’s bosses have now convinced the Department for Transport (DfT) to bring forward similar timetable reductions every Saturday between now and the end of the year.

Sources said at least 15 of Avanti’s services have already been removed on these Saturdays. More pre-emptive cancellations could yet be made.

Avanti admitted that