National Express say there's been a huge surge in people travelling from Manchester to London by bus - as train union announce another strike

There has been a huge surge in passengers catching coaches from Manchester to London following the last few months of train chaos.

Over the last few months train drivers, part of both Aslef and the Rail, Maritime and Transport union (RMT), have staged various walkouts due to a long-running dispute over pay, jobs and working conditions.

As a result it has seen a massive reduction in services, both locally and nationally.

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However, it has also seen a huge surge in people travelling on coaches, including from Manchester to London.

National Express, a schedules coach operator, has said it has seen an 83% increase in passengers compared to before the pandemic. It now operates 12 services a day to London from Chorlton Street coach station with advance tickets from £8.90 one way.

Andy Leonard, National Express’ Senior Coach Station Manager for the North, said: “We know many of our passengers have had a difficult time on the West Coast Mainline recently and have chosen to travel on our coaches, some for the first time.

“It’s great to see that customers are switching to us and enjoying hassle-free, great value travel. As a result we’re putting on more coaches than ever before to serve the growing demand.”

National Express is also expanding its Transpennine network. From 5 May, the 170 and 171 services linking Leeds, Manchester, Manchester Airport and Liverpool will increase from eight to 13 services a day. The company has also invested in three new vehicles to serve this route.

This comes as members of the rail workers’ union have voted to renew their mandate to continue taking industrial action for the next six months in the long-running dispute over pay