A train service transporting commuters between Manchester and London is set to operate empty for approximately five months, following a ruling by the rail regulatory body.

The Office of Rail and Road (ORR) has determined that the 07:00 GMT service, managed by Avanti West Coast, will continue to run but will exclusively transport staff from mid-December onward.

An Avanti West Coast representative expressed their “disappointment” with this choice, emphasizing that it would “undoubtedly affect the customers who routinely utilize these services.”

A spokesperson for the ORR indicated that the decision was made based on “solid evidence” from Network Rail in order to prevent potential disruptions on the West Coast Main Line.

Network Rail chose not to comment on the matter.

The express service, which reaches London in under two hours, will still depart from Manchester Piccadilly at 07:00 on four weekdays, but it will not be accessible to regular commuters.

Instead, it will exclusively serve Avanti personnel traveling from Manchester to London when the new schedule is introduced on 15 December.

As a result of this ruling, the service could potentially conduct over 100 trips without any fare-paying passengers on board.

An Avanti West Coast representative reiterated their disappointment regarding ORR’s refusal to provide access rights from December for four weekday operations, including the key 07:00 express route to London.

Additionally, the ORR mandated that a Sunday service presently running from Holyhead to London must conclude at Crewe, they stated.

“This will clearly impact those customers who already use these services,” the spokesperson remarked.

“However, we will continue to enhance our offerings across our network from the beginning of the December timetable, including introducing more trains on our Liverpool route.”

The spokesperson confirmed the services that would be altered included:

According to an ORR spokesperson, “Our ruling on the Manchester-London service was based on solid evidence from Network Rail that introducing services within ‘firebreak’ paths on the West Coast Main Line would negatively affect performance.

“We have determined that this service would operate in one of those critical paths. Operating it as empty coaching stock (ECS) allows for greater flexibility (including delays or rerouting) compared to a scheduled passenger service.

“This approach can aid in performance management and service recovery during disruptions.”

The ORR noted that Avanti had been granted the right to operate this service starting from May 2025 for one timetable period only, contingent upon First Lumo’s Stirling services not being in operation at that time; however, First Lumo services are anticipated to commence during the December 2025 timetable period.

Furthermore, the ORR stated that under the new timetable, new open access train services managed by First Lumo to Stirling in Scotland are expected to begin.