Plans to run up to four daily trains between Rochdale and London Euston have been rejected by the rail regulator. The Office of Rail and Road (ORR) said adding more trains to the West Coast Main Line 'would likely increase delays and cancelled trains for passengers'.
Lumo's proposal and backing
Low-cost rail operator Lumo had hoped to start services by 2028, with the plans receiving the backing of Rochdale MP Paul Waugh. But in an announcement on Thursday, the ORR said adding more trains to the current timetable 'would reduce the ability to recover when disruption occurs'.
The rail regulator also rejected applications from the Wrexham, Shropshire & Midlands Railway Company (WSMR) for four return Wrexham to London Euston services, and Avanti West Coast's application for additional Blackpool to Euston services.
ORR's assessment and statement
A statement said: "ORR's assessment following detailed and extensive analysis is that the capacity and performance of the southern section of the West Coast Main Line has not materially changed since similar applications were rejected in 2025. An external review commissioned by ORR also supported this conclusion."
"Gaps in the current timetable need to provide important space for trains to recover when disruption occurs, minimising delays to passengers. ORR concluded that adding more services into these windows in the timetable for recovery would reduce that resilience, increasing the risk of disruption spreading to other services and affecting more passengers."
Approved service and impact
The ORR, however, has approved access for Avanti's weekday 19.29 Chester to London Euston service to carry passengers until December, 2030.
Stephanie Tobyn, ORR's director of strategy, policy and reform, said: "New services, destinations and greater choice can bring real benefits for passengers and communities. But the West Coast Main Line is already under significant pressure, with performance reflecting limited resilience on a heavily used part of the rail network."
"Our detailed analysis has shown that adding more trains to the current timetable would reduce the ability to recover when disruption occurs, increasing the risk of delays spreading and making reliability of the network worse for all passengers."
First Group-owned Lumo wanted to run four daily return services between Rochdale and London Euston on weekdays and Saturdays, and three daily return services on Sundays. Services would have run from Rochdale to London Euston, calling at Manchester Victoria, Eccles, Newton-le-Willows and Warrington Bank Quay.
The announcement follows similar rejections on the West Coast Main Line in 2025. Lumo, which was launched in 2021, currently runs open access services between London King's Cross and Edinburgh. FirstGroup also runs open access operator Hull Trains.
