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The Blackpool-London train service could be about to glow up. And it’s just in time, because we just named the town in the north of England one of the best places to visit in the UK in 2026.
Avanti West Coast has made a new bid to bring back an extra weekday service between London and Blackpool after the service was controversially slashed in half, from four to two trains per day, in December 2025. The train operator said the bid had not been approved yet. Avanti said the decision to cut the service was made by the Office of Rail and Road (ORR), an independent, non-ministerial government department.
Blackpool South MP Chris Webb confirmed he will meet Transport Minister Lord Peter Hendy after he raised concerns about the cuts to the resort's rail services. Webb has already warned MPs that a reduced train service could have an adverse impact on Blackpool’s tourism-reliant economy, causing a knock-on effect to jobs.
An Avanti West Coast spokesperson said: ‘As with every timetable change, we have bid for the additional services that we wish to run, and these are subject to approval by the Office of Rail and Road.’
He added: ‘These services, which may be showing in some online rail systems, are not confirmed.’
If you did plan to visit Blackpool, this year would be the time. As well as it being Pleasure Beach’s 130th birthday, the town has a tonne of exciting openings scheduled for this year, including the arrival of ‘colossal’, the tallest theme-park swing in the UK, and the reopening of the art deco seafront hotel The Royal Carlton.
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