Rail regulator rejects direct trains to Wrexham and Rochdale
Britain's rail regulator, the ORR, has rejected plans for direct London services to Wrexham and Rochdale because of heavy pressure on the west coast main line. It also refused Avanti's request for extra Blackpool trains.
The Office of Rail and Road (ORR), Britain's rail regulator, has turned down proposals for two new direct train services from London to Wrexham and Rochdale. It concluded that the crowded west coast main line simply lacks the space for additional services.
The ORR also refused Avanti's bid to run more trains between London and Blackpool. However, it approved one extra evening Avanti service from London to Chester, which would otherwise have run as a "ghost train", with crew and rolling stock heading back north to the depot overnight.
Earlier rejections
Last year the ORR had already rejected a plan by the Wrexham, Shropshire & Midlands Railway Company (WSMR) for an independent open-access service between Wrexham and the capital. The revised application proposed a slightly less frequent service, but the regulator said the routes would still threaten the reliability of the wider network. Such a link could have helped Wrexham build on the boom linked to Wrexham AFC co-owners Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney.
A slimmed-down Lumo proposal for London–Rochdale, previously rejected in 2025, was refused again.
The regulator's reasoning
The ORR said that the capacity and performance of the southern section of the west coast main line have not materially changed since similar applications were turned down in 2025, a view backed by external reviews. Gaps in the current timetable are needed so trains can recover when problems occur, rather than allowing chaos to escalate.
Stephanie Tobyn, the ORR's director of strategy, policy and reform, said new services and greater choice can bring real benefits, but the line is already under significant pressure. Adding trains, she said, would reduce the ability to recover from disruption and make reliability worse for all passengers.
Private operators such as First Group, which owns Lumo, have been seeking to expand open-access routes as Labour renationalises major rail contracts during the transition to Great British Railways. Direct London–Wrexham trains ran from Marylebone between 2008 and 2011 but ended because of financial losses.
