A North West train operator has urged passengers to check their service is running before they travel this weekend.
Northern Rail has confirmed it will have to run at a reduced capacity due as they struggle amidst the UK's surging rise in Covid cases.
Northern's Regional Director, Chris Jackson, spoke of how a number of their staff have received a positive test or been told to self isolate by the NHS Trace and Trace notifications.
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He said: "The decision to change our train plan has not been taken lightly and, in doing so, we have had to balance the demand for services with our realistic ability to provide a reliable and punctual service for our customers. We have opted to reduce frequency so we can maintain a service on most of our routes and keep customers on the move.”
The 'check before you travel' message is something being asked of passengers across the country.
And Director of Nations and Regions at the Rail Delivery Group, Robert Nisbet has advised passengers to stay updated using the app as services are subject to change.
He said: "As cases increase more rail employees could be pinged by the NHS contact tracing app and be asked to self-isolate. While train companies are doing everything they can to minimise any disruption, there may be an impact on services so we are asking people to check before they travel using app alerts which were upgraded during the pandemic as part of our safer travel pledge.”
The news will come as a blow to passengers hoping to use Northern Rail's services to travel to wherever they are watching England vs Italy in the Euro 2020 final on Sunday evening.
And Mr Jackson has issued a warning to those people to think carefully about their travel.
He said: "Of course, many people will want to support England and will be travelling to pubs and bars to watch the match.
“With kick off at 8pm with reduced number of services and possible short notice cancellations, that only leaves a handful of trains on our key routes after the match to get people home and we’re asking our customers to plan ahead and to use all available services or alternative methods of travel. We’ll have buses on standby in many places to assist, but customers can help by staggering their journeys and not all waiting for the last train home.”
Up-to-the-minute details of Northern’s services can be found via the rail operators journey planner at northernrailway.co.uk/journey-planner or at National Rail Enquires at nationalrail.co.uk
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