The Anonymous Widower

Does The UK Need More Passenger Train Capacity Between London And Scotland?

I went from London Euston to Wigan North Western and Blackpool North stations on Wednesday.

Just after the Bank Holiday, the train to the North, which was going to Glasgow Central,  seemed fairly busy, but I suspect that a few more souls could have been squeezed in.

Coming South in the early evening, there was a lot more space, but those that had gone to Scotland for the Bank Holiday weekend had probably returned.

At the moment, I am getting a lot of adverts like this, when I read The Times on-line.

It looks to me, that Avanti West Coast, are ecouraging travellers to use trains to travel to and from Glasgow.

How Many Anglo-Scottish Trains Are There?

• Avanti West Coast – 6 tpd – London Euston to Edinburgh Waverley via Birmingham New Street
• Avanti West Coast – 6 tpd – London Euston to Glasgow Central via Birmingham New Street
• Avanti West Coast – 1 tph  – London Euston to Glasgow Central via Trent Valley
• CrossCountry – 1 tph – Plymouth to Edinburgh Waverley
• LNER – 2 tph – London King’s Cross to Edinburgh Waverley
• Lumo – 6 tpd – London King’s Cross to Edinburgh Waverley and Glasgow Queen Street
• Lumo – 4 tpd – London Euston to Stirling
• TransPennine Express – 1 tp2h – Manchester Airport to Glasgow Central
• TransPennine Express – 1 tp2h – Manchester Airport to Edinburgh Waverley
• TransPennine Express – 4 tpd – Liverpool Lime Street to Glasgow Central

Note.

1. tpd is trains per day.
2. tph is trains per hour.
3. tp2h is trains per two hours.
4. The two Avanti West Coast services via Birmingham New Street alternate.
5. The Avanti West Coast London Euston to Glasgow Central via Trent Valley service runs 15 tpd.
6. The two TransPennine Express services from Manchester Airport to Scotland alternate.

My initial estimate is that there are 5 x 15 tph +16 tpd or 91 tpd.

How Many Anglo-Scottish Trains Are There On HS2?

In the original design for HS2, this was the service pattern.

Note.

1. Train 10 runs hourly between London and Scotland via Old Oak Common and Preston and splits at Carlisle with one train serving Edinburgh Waverley and the other Glasgow Central.
2. Train 11 runs hourly between London and Scotland via Old Oak Common, Birmingham Interchange and Preston and splits at Carlisle with one train serving Edinburgh Waverley and the other Glasgow Central.
3. Train 12 runs hourly between Birmingham Curzon Street and Scotland and serves Edinburgh Waverley and Glasgow Central alternatively.

It looks like HS2 contributes 5 tph between England and Scotland or 75 tpd.

But as HS2 is currently configured, these trains will still run.

• CrossCountry – 1 tph – Plymouth to Edinburgh Waverley
• LNER – 2 tph – London King’s Cross to Edinburgh Waverley
• Lumo – 6 tpd – London King’s Cross to Edinburgh Waverley and Glasgow Queen Street
• Lumo – 4 tpd – London Euston to Stirling
• TransPennine Express – 1 tp2h – Manchester Airport to Glasgow Central
• TransPennine Express – 1 tp2h – Manchester Airport to Edinburgh Waverley
• TransPennine Express – 4 tpd – Liverpool Lime Street to Glasgow Central

My estimate is that there will also be 4 x 15 tph +14 tpd or 74 tpd by classic routes.

This will mean 149 tpd in total.

May 9, 2026 - Posted by AnonW | Transport/Travel | Avanti West Coast, Blackpool North Station, Bradford Forster Square Station, Carlisle Station, CrossCountry Trains, East Midlands Railway, Edinburgh Waverley Station, Euston Station, Glasgow Central Station, Glasgow Queen Street Station, High Speed Two, King's Cross Station, Leeds Station, Liverpool Lime Street Station, LNER, Lumo, Lumo King's Cross And Glasgow, Manchester Airport, Manchester Airport Station, Scotland, Sheffield Station, TransPennine Express, Trent Valley Line, West Coast Main Line, Wigan North Western Station