Trains on London Euston route cut by HALF from Monday as coronavirus pandemic affects staff and passengers

London Northwestern Railway will cut services by half from Monday (March 23) as the coronavirus pandemic affects staff and passengers.

The operator, which runs trains between London Euston, Birmingham and the North West via Milton Keynes and Northampton, says the move to an emergency timetable will help keep trains moving for essential workers.

Government advice to avoid all non-essential travel has already resulted in a dramatic drop in demand for rail travel this week and the company has also had to deal with staff self-isolating in reponse to the Covid-19 bug.

LNWR managing director Julian Edwards said: “Revising our timetable is the most effective way of making sure we continue to run a regular, reliable service to keep people moving in these exceptional circumstances.

“Like every employer in the country, we have a number of our staff currently in self-isolation and attempting to continue with our regular timetable would be impossible.

“Although demand for rail travel has dropped, we know there are many thousands of people who need to keep moving, including NHS workers and others involved in delivering essential public services. That is why our front-line staff will continue coming to work in order to deliver this timetable and help keep the country moving.”

New times is currently being finalised but will be available on the LNWR website and National Rail Enquiries' journey planner by Sunday afternoon.