A couple endured a nightmare journey home after their train from Glasgow to Liverpool was "too full" to depart.
Hannah Wood, 31, and George Creighton, 41, were in Glasgow last weekend for a family wedding. With tickets booked in advance, they arrived at Glasgow Central station for their train back to Liverpool on Sunday (August 14). The couple were booked on the 4.38pm service from Glasgow, which was set to arrive at Lime Street at 8.10pm - after changing at Wigan North Western.
However, Hannah and George claim that they didn't arrive back to their Anfield home until around 1am after a journey that involved a crowded train with no air conditioning, an unexpected change at Carlisle and having to get a "£50 taxi" to complete the final stretch.
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George told the ECHO : " We got to the train station and the train that we were meant to be on had already been cancelled. The queue was already out of the door and they said they would put another train on."
The two managed to get on the next train, but they said that it quickly became very busy. Hannah said: "When we got on, we were telling them that it was too full and they couldn’t get on.
"Everyone was crowded, there was no air conditioning on any carriages and then they put a message out asking people to get off because the train couldn’t move as it had too many people on it - people were asked to travel tomorrow if possible. There were people sitting on floors, sitting on top of each other’s suitcases - everything."
Pictures shared with the ECHO show an incredibly busy Avanti train, with people having to stand and sit in the aisle. According to weather forecasts, it was approximately 23 degrees in Glasgow on Sunday.
The train was able to leave the Scottish city, but Hannah and George said their journey hit another snag as they were forced to leave their -train at Carlisle - just two stops into its route. They said that people were told to leave the train and they had to then get a train from Carlisle to Warrington Bank Quay.
Hannah continued: " We got to Warrington at around 11pm and they said we had to go to Warrington Central to get the train to Liverpool. So there were hundreds of Scousers running through Warrington to get this train. We got there and they said that the train was cancelled due to a fire near the track."
Chris Jackson, regional director for Northern, told the ECHO : “Services between Birchwood and Manchester Oxford Road were suspended on Sunday evening at the request of North West Fire Control. This was due to the proximity to the track of a fire they were responding to. We apologise to customers affected by these safety-critical cancellations.”
Hannah said that Northern provided a rail replacement bus to Liverpool, but they said this was due to arrive at 2am. So, instead they chose to pay £50 on a taxi and got home around 1am - around eight-and-a half hours after they arrived at Glasgow Station for a journey that should've taken just over three-and-a-half.
The couple were incredibly disappointed with the service and the conditions in which they had to travel, as well as the time it took to get home.
Asked by the ECHO about the service on Sunday, an Avanti West Coast spokesperson said: “We are very sorry to hear about the customers’ journey and any discomfort they experienced while travelling with us. Our trains were extremely busy as a result of short-notice cancellations due to staff being unavailable and the impact of the driver’s strike the day before.
“We apologise for the inconvenience these cancellations caused. Customers who arrived at their destination 15 minutes late or more, can claim Delay Repay compensation on our website.”
Avanti has recently cut services on the West Coast Main Line. A reduced timetable has been in place from August 14 and will remain so until further notice.
ASLEF - the train drivers' union - were on strike on August 13 and have claimed that many train companies (including Avanti) have failed to make a pay offer that allows its members to keep up with the increase in the cost of living. It also urges Avanti to recruit more drivers.
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