Avanti increases number of London-Liverpool trains

The company says levels of service are back to those in December 2019

An extra 36 trains connecting Liverpool and London each week have been announced by Avanti West Coast.

The West Coast Main Line operator said it would be the first time it had run more services since it took over from Virgin Trains in December 2019.

Following the introduction of a new timetable, there are new 2,045 trains operating across the Avanti West Coast network each week.

The company said: "Other routes that have benefited from the changes include an increase in direct services to and from Manchester and Chester - with both destinations benefitting from a new weekly southbound service to London that departs later."

Managing director Andy Mellors said: "This uplift builds on the progress we made in May and will bring benefits across the network, reflecting our long-term ambition to run a consistent 10 trains per hour."

Avanti said the increased services had been made possible by the introduction of its new £350m Evero fleet of 13 bi-mode and 10 electric trains, the last of which came into service in June.

Avanti said the additional Chester-London serice would also offer "greater connectivity" for customers travelling to and from North Wales.

Manchester passengers will be able to choose from two extra services per day, including a later link to London.

Those heading north will see additional services providing later onward travel from Macclesfield.

Chester passengers will be able to travel on an hourly service to and from London following the addition of two extra trains per day.