Manchester-London 7am ‘ghost train’ to carry passengers after outcry over regulator’s decision

The express Manchester-London 7am Avanti service will take passengers after all, after the rail regulator conceded defeat in the face of public outcry over a ruling that would have left it running as an empty “ghost train” each day.

The 7am train, the only service linking the cities in under two hours, was set to be axed from the passenger table from mid-December – but would, as the Guardian reported on Saturday , have kept running empty from Piccadilly each day so it could run morning trains back out of Euston.

The regulator, the Office of Rail and Road (ORR), said it was necessary to remove the service to give space for manoeuvre in case of disruption – despite Network Rail agreeing that Avanti could take passengers, as the train was running anyway.

However, after widespread conde