Full
Marston
Vale
service
to
return



London
Northwestern
Railway
has
announced
deeply
discounted
fares
on
the
Marston
Vale
line
between
Bedford
and
Bletchley,
in
a
bid
to
attract
passengers
back
when
full
services
are
resumed
on
the
route
on
Monday.
Marston
Vale
trains
were
withdrawn
in
December
2022
when
rolling
stock
engineers
Vivarail
went
into
administration,
making
their
Class
230
conversions
based
on
Underground
rolling
stock
difficult
to
maintain.
Four
trains
a
day
returned
in
November
last
year.
LNW
has
been
working
to
secure
enough
Class
150
units
to
provide
a
full
timetable,
and
three
units
have
now
been
transferred
from
Northern.
For
three
months
from
Monday,
a
single
journey
between
any
two
stations
on
the
Marston
Vale
Line
will
cost
£1,
which
will
be
up
to
90
per
cent
less
than
the
usual
fares.

West
Coast
Main
Line
reopens


Trains
are
now
running
in
both
directions
on
the
West
Coast
Main
Line
between
Coventry
and
Rugby
again,
after
a
landslip
on
Sunday
closed
the
up
line
near
Church
Lawford.
Although
northbound
trains
could
continue
at
first,
engineers
had
to
take
a
full
possession
to
deal
with
the
problem.
Although
trains
have
returned,
they
are
still
being
delayed
slightly
by
a
temporary
speed
restriction.
Network
Rail
said
it
is
monitoring
the
situation
and
that
further
work
to
stabilise
the
embankment
further
will
now
be
carried
out
during
overnight
closures.
Meanwhile,
Network
Rail
is
dealing
with
a
simillar
problem
at
Baildon,
on
a
single
connecting
line
linking
Shipley
with
the
Ilkley
route
in
West
Yorkshire.
Engineers
have
been
at
the
scene
since
5
February
after
cracks
were
reported
in
a
cutting
slope.
Over
the
past
week,
the
land
has
slipped
and
repairs
are
now
set
to
start.
Network
Rail
has
warned
that
the
line
may
not
be
open
again
before
mid-March.

Merseyrail
fares
freeze


Merseyrail
fares
are
to
be
frozen
for
six
months.
Metro
Mayor
Steve
Rotheram
said
proposed
increases
will
be
delayed
until
September
at
the
earliest,
using
money
‘clawed
back’
from
Stadler
after
problems
with
the
new
Merseyrail
fleet.
A
freeze
on
Transport
for
London
fares
has
already
been
announced
by
Mayor
Sadiq
Khan,
but
regulated
fares
on
National
Rail
in
England
will
increase
by
4.9
per
cent
on
3
March.