Future of the West Coast Mainline

The West Coast Main Line

The West Coast Main Line (WCML) is one of the major rail routes in Great Britain, stretching 399 miles (641.6km) from London Euston to Glasgow and Edinburgh via the West Midlands and the North West of England.

According to Network Rail who own and maintain it, the WCML track has 64 operational stations and is:

“the busiest mixed-use railway in Europe, forming Anglo-Scottish journeys between London, Glasgow and Edinburgh via the West Midlands and North West, as well as providing commuter links direct to the capital through Hertfordshire, Northamptonshire and Buckinghamshire.”

In 2015 the Department for Transport (DfT) described the WCML as “one of our most important rail corridors” adding:

“it links four of Britain’s biggest conurbations and serves all rail markets: inter-city; commuter; regional; and freight. […]

Three of Britain’s top six business rail flows (London to each of Manchester, Birmingham and Liverpool) are served by the WCML; a significant inter-city leisure market also exists.”

Train Operating Companies

The following Train Operating Companies (‘TOCs’ or ‘operators’) use the WCML:

• Avanti West Coast
• TransPennine Express
• West Midlands Trains
• London North Western
• Northern
• CrossCountry
• Caledonian Sleeper
• ScotRail
• LNER
• Transport for Wales (TfW)
• Southern

In addition, in March 2024 the Office of Rail and Road (ORR) approved a proposal for open-access train operator Lumo to operate four services in each direction between London and Stirling using the WCML, starting in Spring 2026. Open-access train operators are those without a contract with or directly operated by the UK Government, Scottish or Welsh Ministers, or devolved government in England.

However, in July 2025 the ORR rejected three further open access applications which would have used the WCML, citing capacity and performance concerns.

Freight

The WCML is a key corridor for rail freight. In 2018, 90,000 freight trains used the West Coast Main Line and 90% of all intermodal trains (trains carrying standardised containers between ports, freight terminals, and distribution centres) used it for part of their journey. In September 2024, then Transport Secretary Louise Haigh said that the government would set a rail freight growth target.

Performance statistics

The Office for Road and Rail (ORR) produces interactive dashboards on Passenger rail performance, P-coded cancellations and Performance at stations. These can be used to find details on the train operating companies (TOCs) and stations that use the West Coast Main Line.

Punctuality

‘On time’ is defined as early or less than one minute after the scheduled arrival time. In 2024, the average percentage of ‘On time’ services across Great Britain was 67.0%. This compares to 40.6% of Avanti West Coast, 47.3% of CrossCountry, 49.4% of TransPennine Express, 63.3% of West Midlands and 58.2% of Northern Trains that were ‘on time’. Each selected train operator that use the West Coast Main Line, except for TransPennine Express, was below the Great Britain average.

Source: Office for Road and Rail (ORR), Passenger rail performance, Table 3133

Cancellations

In 2024, 4.0% of trains in Great Britain were cancelled. With the exception of TransPennine Express (3.9%), each selected train operators that use the West Coast Main Line was below the Great Britain average every quarter in 2024: 7.2% of Avanti West Coast, 7.4% of CrossCountry, 5.0% of West Midlands and 5.8% of Northern Trains that were ‘on time’. Each selected train operators that use the West Coast Main Line was below the Great Britain average every quarter in 2024.

Source: Office for Road and Rail (ORR), Passenger rail performance, Table 3123

HS2 and the WCML

HS2 is a project to build a high-speed rail line in England. HS2 was originally planned to connect London to Birmingham, Manchester, East Midlands Parkway, Leeds and York. In its 2013 Strategic Case for HS2 [PDF] the government said that existing capacity on the West Coast Main Line was limited despite upgrades to the line that were completed in 2008, and that routes into major cities would be increasingly capacity constrained in the future without future enhancements.

However, in October 2023 then Prime Minister Rishi Sunak announced that HS2 would only run from London to the West Midlands. Critics of the decision to cancel HS2 north of the West Midlands have said that this undermines one of the principal aims of HS2, relieving pressure on the west coast mainline.

“HS2-light”

Following the cancellation of the HS2 line north of the West Midlands, the mayors of Manchester and the West Midlands commissioned a report which recommended the construction of a cheaper alternative, the Midlands-North West Rail Link (PDF) (sometimes called “HS2-Light”). This would consist of a new railway line between the northern end of the HS2 Phase 1 route, Crewe, and the proposed new railway line between Warrington, Manchester and Yorkshire.

In response, the government has said it is considering options for enhancing rail infrastructure in the north of England:

“Minister Hendy met with Mayors Burnham and Parker last November, following the publication of the Midlands North-West Rail Link plan; the Mayors’ plan involved leveraging private capital to build a new Birmingham to Manchester railway line. The Department is currently reviewing a range of options for enhancing northern rail infrastructure while ensuring value for money for taxpayers.”

Further information

Further information on HS2 is given in the Library briefing, High Speed Rail 2 – an overview.