Virgin restarts Shrewsbury to London rail service talks

Virgin Trains still wants to establish a direct link between Shrewsbury and London

Talks over a direct rail link between Shrewsbury and London have restarted after plans for a twice-daily service were rejected for a second time.

Virgin Trains wanted to launch the service on the West Coast Main Line in December but Network Rail said the line could not cope with extra traffic.

The Office of Rail Regulation rejected the train operator's subsequent appeal.

Virgin says it is now discussing alternative timetables with Network Rail in a bid to secure the link.