Northern has issued a "do not travel" alert for New Year's Eve with the rail operator not running services on six lines due to train crew unavailability.
The government-controlled rail operator confirmed it would not run services on six of its lines on Sunday, December 31 with services on its other lines finishing earlier than usual with some shutting down as early as 4pm. The affected routes with a "do not travel" alert connect Manchester Victoria with Chester and Stalybridge, Manchester Piccadilly with Chester via Altrincham, and Preston with Colne.
These lines include train stations including Newton-le-Willows and Warrington Bank Quay. There will also be no trains between Morecambe and Lancaster, or Clitheroe and Bolton. The last train from Manchester Victoria to Liverpool Lime Street arrives in Liverpool at 10.24pm.
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The Manchester Evening News reported some Northern staff only work on Sundays as voluntary paid overtime, creating the risk of not having enough available employees to run the full timetable. It comes as train services across the country are decimated over the New Year's Eve weekend by a combination of bad weather and staff unavailability.
Avanti West Coast axed several of its services to and from London Euston due to a staff shortage, while Eurostar services were cancelled "until the end of the day" this morning due to heavy rain and strong winds. A shortage of train crew at Edinburgh meant CrossCountry cancelled a number of trains to and from the station, while London Northwestern Railway warned passengers it is "anticipating crowding and disruption to services on New Year’s Eve".
A Rail Delivery Group spokesperson said: “We know it’s frustrating when customers can’t get the services they are expecting. As an industry we are committed to making sure train services are reliable and punctual. The majority of train operators are planning to run the published timetable between now and New Year when we expect services to be particularly busy.
"But, there will be some local challenges that affect some services. Train services may start slightly later or finish earlier than usual, so it is best to check the latest travel information with your train operator or National Rail.”
A Department for Transport spokesperson said: “While staffing is a matter for industry, we are working with them to ensure they are able to deliver the services that passengers need, making clear that we will hold them to account if they let passengers down."
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