Virgin Trains have announced that they are scraping the peak time Friday afternoon restrictions that resulted in a mass overcrowding of the first train back to Manchester to run off peak.
The huge difference in many peak and off-peak fares previously led to huge demand for the first Friday night off-peak trains at around 7pm.
This led to many passengers embarking on a weekend getaway having to stand for up to several hours on trains.
The Company said congestion has eased since it began a trial to end Friday afternoon peak restrictions in July.On the Manchester route it had eased from 113 per cent to 51 per cent, and has reported an additional 3,500 journeys were made each Friday during the trial amid an increase in passenger satisfaction.
The firm’s commercial director, Sarah Copley, said: “Rather than everyone waiting for the first off-peak train on Friday evening, people can now travel whenever’s convenient for them.
“This change means we’ve been able to reduce congestion, whilst helping people save money and make an earlier start to their weekends.”
The reduction of fares on the Manchester could work out to be as much as £125 for passengers
