Local train services in Manchester set for cutbacks.

[Foghut]

Originally Posted by hstudent

But ALL TOCs have to pay that, not just Virgin.

Indeed they do, but the point I was making was in response to Resolution's posting

I doubt Northern or Transpennine Express could get extra new trains to run a more frequent Manchester to Preston/Blackpool service, which gets a lot more overcrowded than Manchester to London services currently do.

I should imagine that just about every single TOC in the country would like more stock to combat overcrowding. Unfortunately though the decision for who gets the available stock rests in the hands of the ORR and the ROSCOs - the TOCs and their passengers just have to take what they're given because details like this are written as non-negotiable terms of the franchise that they originally bidded for.

This is one of the few industries in the world where the customers have zero say in what they're (over)paying for, and are treated with total contempt by their suppliers.

[hairyhandedfool]

The government has made all of the mistakes on the railway since privatisation was envisaged. accepting that privatisation itself was a mistake, there were too many franchises to start with, the tracks should have stayed government owned, the trains should have belonged to ther franchises not outside companies, the franchises varied too much in length. then when it was all up and running they stepped in again, "this route shouldn't be yours it should be theirs with their shorter more cramped trains" for example xc lost bhm-cdf trains because railtrack speed restrictions made their service impossible to run, it wasn't the only route that was impossible to run but they picked it anyway. they now have it back but can't go to scotland from manchester. and how they can claim that tpe doesn't belong in xc is beyond me.