Transport secretary gives rail firm six-month extension after number of services and punctuality improves
Ministers have given another contract extension to Avanti West Coast, saying the poorly performing rail operator had made improvements to services that were scaled back drastically in recent months, prompting chaos and a customer backlash.
Mark Harper, the transport secretary, said that while he understood the frustrations of passengers who had faced a big reduction in intercity services and a ban on most advance ticket sales, he had extended the contract for a further six months to the end of October.
