Why the railways often seem to be in such chaos over Christmas
Extensive rail engineering closes 5% of the network over Christmas, including an 11-day shutdown of key West Coast Main Line sections for major track relaying.
U-turn on Manchester Piccadilly to London Euston 'ghost train' plan
The ORR has allowed Avanti's 07:00 Manchester-to-London service to continue carrying passengers despite concerns it could harm West Coast Main Line reliability and punctuality.
ORR reversed its ban and will allow passengers on the 07:00 Avanti West Coast Manchester Piccadilly–London service; four other services will run without passengers.
The Elizabeth line that never was: The Watford Junction extension from Old Oak Common
Old Oak Common could have been configured to extend Elizabeth line services northwest toward Watford Junction via sidings linkage to the WCML, offering diversion capacity.
