Northern issues 'do not travel' warning AGAIN despite growing pressure to improve

Would-be rail passengers across Greater Manchester are being urged not to travel once again. Warnings from rail operator Northern against using trains on Sundays have become a regular occurrence in recent months.

Mayor Andy Burnham previously slammed the warnings as 'embarrassing', while transport secretary Louise Haigh told the Manchester Evening News yesterday (November 7) that Northern's service had become 'totally unacceptable'. Yet in the face of fierce criticism from politicians and passengers, Northern has issued the warning yet again.

In a statement, the company has apologised to travellers, insisting it is still facing issues with crew availability. It has confirmed that four North West lines will be out of action on Sunday (November 10), with no replacement buses.

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The cancellations will impact travel plans on the first weekend of the Manchester Christmas markets, as well as those travelling to and from Remembrance Day services and Manchester United's home clash with Leicester City on Sunday. An update on the company's website said: "Recently, we have seen higher levels of cancellations in the North West and for that we are sorry.

"The underlying reason is train crew availability, in particular on Sundays which is contractually outside of the working week. We'll continue to provide as much advance notice as possible when services or routes are impacted. We recommend that you regularly check your journey and this page for the latest information."

There will be no Northern trains or replacement buses running between Manchester Piccadilly and Stoke-on-Trent via Macclesfield, Manchester Piccadilly and Chester via