ARFON MP, Hywel Williams, has called on the new transport secretary to strip Avanti of the West Coast Main Line franchise for its dire service to commuters in north Wales.

He told the House of Commons the franchise should be replaced with a public service like Germany.

The train operator which runs services on the North Wales Main Line through Bangor is now running drastically reduced services until further notice with the cancellation of the majority of direct services from north Wales to London Euston.

Ticket sales have been suspended, timetables have been drastically altered, services substantially reduced and of those trains operating, most are packed - all of which significantly impacts journey times. The Arfon MP said some of his constituents were driving nearly 300 miles to London to avoid using Avanti.

Speaking in the House of Commons, the MP said: “The train service to Bangor and along the vital Irish route to Holyhead was never great. Now it is dire.

“Visitors to north Wales are abandoning the train in Crewe and taking to their cars.

“Constituents are driving to London rather than take the train.

“So much for Union Connectivity. So much for green travel.

“Is it not clear that Avanti should lose the franchise and be replaced with a public service as in other more developed countries such as Germany?”

He added: “Rail-users in north Wales are being greatly inconvenienced by the continued reduction in services with no direct North Wales to London trains now running from my constituency where there was once two or three a day.

“People deserve certainty and confidence that their train will run on time. Without a reliable timetable, the ability to book tickets in advance and trains that actually turn up – it is very difficult for people to plan ahead with confidence.

“Commuters face significantly increased journey times compounded by very poor communication and a completely unreliable timetable.

“This disruption is bad for business and for leisure travellers.”

A spokesperson for Avanti said: “We know we’re not delivering the service our customers rightly expect and we apologise for the enormous frustration and inconvenience.

“Our customers and communities deserve a dependable train service, so we’re currently working hard to rebuild our timetable in a resilient and sustainable way.

“Resolving this situation requires a robust plan that will allow us to gradually increase services without being reliant on train crew overtime, which has fallen dramatically in recent weeks.

“We would like to thank our customers for their patience and understanding.”