Avanti West Coast to Axe One in Seven Trains on Key Routes This Summer

Avanti West Coast is cutting about one in seven trains on its busiest intercity routes this summer in a bid to trim costs. The operator will drop 38 weekday services from its usual 248 daily trains connecting London Euston with Birmingham, Liverpool, and Manchester, starting July 20. The move comes after the Department for Transport, under Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander, approved a revised timetable aimed at reducing spending during the quieter summer months.

The affected trains will be removed from schedules before advance tickets go on sale. Notably, the threatened 7:00 a.m. fast service from Manchester Piccadilly to London Euston—saved in December after public outcry—will continue to run. Avanti insists the changes are “demand-led” and will only affect routes with multiple trains per hour, ensuring minimal disruption.

The government has been working to cut rail spending, which has hovered around £12 billion annually since the pandemic. Avanti, which operates fast intercity services on the West Coast Mainline to Glasgow, has the worst punctuality record on the national network, according to the Office of Rail and Road. Yet customer satisfaction surveys show improvement, and service numbers have rebounded since Covid-era driver shortages forced severe cuts.

An Avanti spokesperson said the amended timetable, in effect from July 20 to August 28, targets less busy periods to maximize alternative journey options. They urged passengers to plan ahead. A DfT spokesperson added that the changes will save taxpayer money while meeting demand, noting that many summer trains run with empty seats.

Avanti is set to be nationalized in early 2027 under Great British Railways. The operator said the latest reductions aren't due to resource shortages, though it remains tightly contracted to the DfT. In 2024, leaked internal slides referred to state funding as “free money,” highlighting a rocky history with public subsidies.