Rail regulator 'gains assurances' from Avanti over advanced timetable publication

The rail regulator says it has 'gained assurances' from Avanti West Coast that the train operator will return to providing timetables at least six weeks in advance of travel.

The Office of Rail and Road (ORR) said the news would 'provide some comfort' for passengers they said had faced uncertainty in the past few months due to 'very short-term confirmation of timetables'. In some cases, said the regulator of Britain's railways, passengers endured just 48 hours notice ahead of weekend travel.

It was confirmed by the Department of Transport today that under-fire Avanti West Coast, ahead of the scheduled end of its franchise on October 16, has been given another six months to run the west coast main line rail service, with a warning that it must increase the frequency of its services.

READ MORE: "The Government has rewarded chaos and failure": Anger in Greater Manchester as Avanti handed new six-month rail contract

Andy Burnham, the mayor of Greater Manchester who has led calls for Avanti to be stripped of its contract over scaled-down timetables between Manchester and London, called in the wake of the contract extension for 'day-to-day monitoring and week-to-week public reporting on performance' to be introduced.

Reacting to the news, he said: "Putting Avanti West Coast on notice marks a significant shift in tone under the new Secretary of State. At last, there is a clear recognition of the crisis engulfing the country’s most important railway line and the management failure that has led to that.

"However, the lack of an acceptable rescue plan from the company - and clear conditions from the Government - means very few people in Greater Manchester will support this extension.

"The damage that Avanti’s failing