Avanti West Coast has been ordered to release train tickets for its services further in advance, or face “formal measures” otherwise.
After customers have been claiming that the rail firm’s decision to only release tickets just a few days ahead of travel dates mean they are often being denied cheaper rates, Avanti West Coast has been told by rail regulator the Office of Rail and Road (ORR) to submit an improved recovery plan for producing timetables and releasing tickets by 2 February, or face “formal measures” if it fails to.
Since taking over from Virgin Trains back in December 2019, Avanti now runs the West Coast Mainline between London Euston and Glasgow Central, and also serves the Midlands, North West of England, and North Wales.
The rail firm is responsible for operating the route from Manchester Piccadilly to London Euston.
Most rail operators have a 12-week booking window for tickets, but so far this month, passengers looking to book tickets for weekend travel on Avanti West Coast Services have only been able to buy them just a few days in advance, while weekday tickets have also been released far later than what should be expected.
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Avanti West Coast told to release train tickets earlier or face ‘formal measures’ / Credit: TPE
Avanti has blamed the delay in tickets becoming available on it having to produce bespoke timetables in partnership with Network Rail during engineering work that are currently going on, and says tickets can only be put on sale once timetables are confirmed.
But the ORR says the rail operator is still “falling short”, and that passengers are “rightly frustrated” at the deteriorating services.
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“By 2 February, we expect Avanti to identify what has gone wrong and set out how it intends to get back to releasing timetables in normal industry timescales so that passengers can plan and book journeys with greater confidence,” said Stephanie Tobyn, Strategy, Policy, and Reform Director of the ORR.
“Failure to produce an acceptable plan or to deliver improvements may lead to more formal measures.”
The ORR says the rail operator is still “falling short” of what is expected / Credit: Avanti West Coast
Addressing the order to improve services, a spokesperson for Avanti West Coast said: “Unfortunately, some tickets for Saturdays and Sundays have only been available at short notice due to having to write unprecedented numbers of bespoke timetables to accommodate industrial action and engineering work which has stretched industry train planning resources.
“We know this causes huge uncertainty and inconvenience for passengers, and we’re sorry for that.
“Weekend tickets are now on sale up to mid-February, and by mid-March we’ll be selling weekend tickets six weeks out.”
Featured Image – Avanti West Coast
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Drama Call opening first-ever flagship shop in Manchester
Danny Jones
Streetwear superstars Drama Call are opening their new flagship store and first-ever permanent site in Manchester city centre this weekend.
Expect massive queues and lots turning up wearing the increasingly recognisable starry logo.
Already a much-loved brand not just here in 0161 but across the nation at large, the native independent business turned street-style favourites and UK fashion phenomenon are no strangers to HUGE pop-ups in their hometown.
However, they’ve never had a mainstay location anywhere in the country, let alone Greater Manchester – well, until now, that is…
Credit: Press shots (supplied)
Debuting in the Northern Quarter this Sunday, the venue located on Tib Street will effectively serve as Drama Call‘s new HQ.
The local label has done everything from popping up vans with Manc rapper Aitch to collaborating with Man United for multiple limited edition collections, so it only felt like a matter of time before they’d make a big brick-and-mortar splash in our fair city.
Most notably, they’re also taking over the same unit as the Sheep Shop, a former skate shop and legendary urban clothing tastemaker of the 90s; they were one of the first places in Britain to stock famous names like Stüssy, Supreme, Carhartt, The North Face and many more.
With that in mind, it feels only fitting that they carry on the trendsetting tradition from the same premises, and just spitting distance from the likes of Note, as well.
And that’s not all, either: before the full launch, they’ll also be holding an exclusive cash-only shirt swap event, where a limited number of certain collector’s items will be sold for as little as £10.
Other things to note are the additions of signed vinyls by homegrown artists such as the aforementioned Aitch and even The Smiths.
In fact, the store will also feature strictly Mancunian exclusives, too.
Everything from polo shirts and tees to branded mugs, matchboxes and other accessories will be available in-store only.
NQ is bound to be buzzing across launch weekend, with doors officially opening to the public on Sunday, and we wouldn’t be surprised if you see people camping outside the front well ahead of time.
What a moment the Manc shopping scene is having right now.
Featured Images — Publicity pictures (supplied via Pear)
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Andy Burnham explains why Number 10 North is so important as it officially ‘opens for business’
Emily Sergeant
Andy Burnham has explained his key reasons for launching Number 10 North as it officially ‘opens for business’ this week.
You may remember that earlier last month, Andy Burnham revealed he had intentions to create a Number 10 North if he was to become Prime Minister, with the new base expected to be a ‘dominant driver of the UK’s economy’ once it was officially up and running… and now, fast forward to today, Number 10 North is officially ‘open for business’.
Operating from Heron House in Manchester city centre, as previously reported on, Number 10 North will be the Government’s new ‘situation room for growth’.
It also brings the ‘levers’ of local economic growth and devolution together under one roof for the first time ever.
Number 10 North has officially ‘opened for business’ / Credit: gov.uk (via Wikimedia Commons)
With the Prime Minister expected to work from Number 10 North each week, so that decisions about the country’s economic future will no longer exclusively be made in Westminster, and with other ministers also working from there on a regular basis, the Government says the move underlines its determination to ‘do things differently’.
Now that Number 10 North has officially opened, Andy Burnham and his fellow ministers have explained why this move is so important for not just Manchester, but the north as a whole.
“For 40 years, power and resources have been sucked into the centre, and too many communities have felt forgotten, without the attention and investment they deserve,” explained Andy Burnham.
“Number 10 North will change that by putting more power into every postcode across the entire country. It will be the situation room for making Britain better, the place we use to get power out of Westminster, into the hands of people at a local level, so that they can turn things around.
“The days of Whitehall resisting devolution are over, for good.”
First Secretary Louise Haigh added: “Today marks a fundamental re-balancing of where power sits in our country. Number 10 North has been set up to drive economic growth in every postcode and put power in the hands of every community.
Emily Sergeant -
25th January 2023 
