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| Version 0 | Version 1 |
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| Northern rail: Mayors call for government takeover | Northern rail: Mayors call for government takeover |
| (about 1 hour later) | |
| Elected mayors have called for the government to take control of rail operator Northern, accusing it of breaking promises to passengers. | |
| Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham and Liverpool Metro Mayor Steve Rotheram accused the firm of failing to deliver promised improvements. | |
| They said commuters were being crammed on to smaller trains and facing regular delays. | They said commuters were being crammed on to smaller trains and facing regular delays. |
| Northern said it was "working hard" to improve the service for passengers. | |
| The latest criticism of the operator's record came a year after widespread rail timetable chaos affected services country-wide. | The latest criticism of the operator's record came a year after widespread rail timetable chaos affected services country-wide. |
| The mayors said Northern, operated by Arriva Rail North, had failed to tackle issues such as overcrowding and said the number of trains being run with reduced carriages had risen since December last year. | The mayors said Northern, operated by Arriva Rail North, had failed to tackle issues such as overcrowding and said the number of trains being run with reduced carriages had risen since December last year. |
| 'Enough is enough' | 'Enough is enough' |
| They accused Northern of repeatedly failing to introduce promised commuter services to towns including Knutsford and Northwich, in Cheshire, and said it risked failing to meet its own deadline to phase out ageing Pacer trains by the end of 2019. | They accused Northern of repeatedly failing to introduce promised commuter services to towns including Knutsford and Northwich, in Cheshire, and said it risked failing to meet its own deadline to phase out ageing Pacer trains by the end of 2019. |
| Northern ran up to a fifth of its services late and had cancelled 255 services last Sunday, according to figures published by the mayors' offices. | Northern ran up to a fifth of its services late and had cancelled 255 services last Sunday, according to figures published by the mayors' offices. |
| The mayors said they had been forced to intervene to end an industrial dispute with the Rail, Maritime and Transport union (RMT) over the role of guards which halted thousands of Saturday services spanning 47 weeks. | The mayors said they had been forced to intervene to end an industrial dispute with the Rail, Maritime and Transport union (RMT) over the role of guards which halted thousands of Saturday services spanning 47 weeks. |
| Mr Burnham said: "We have been extremely patient with Northern but enough is enough. | Mr Burnham said: "We have been extremely patient with Northern but enough is enough. |
| "They promised us that things would be significantly better by May 2019 and that hasn't happened." | "They promised us that things would be significantly better by May 2019 and that hasn't happened." |
| The mayors said the Department for Transport (DfT) had a "legal duty" to take over as operator of last resort in the same way it had taken control of the East Coast Main Line last year. | The mayors said the Department for Transport (DfT) had a "legal duty" to take over as operator of last resort in the same way it had taken control of the East Coast Main Line last year. |
| Northern's franchises cover the North West, Yorkshire, parts of Derbyshire, and the North East and are due to run until 2025. | Northern's franchises cover the North West, Yorkshire, parts of Derbyshire, and the North East and are due to run until 2025. |
| Northern managing director David Brown said improvements for customers since last year included "better punctuality", investment in new and refurbished trains and the introduction of more than 2,000 new services. | |
| He added: "These improvements are still a work in progress, but we are making things better for our customers." | |
| RMT general secretary Mick Cash said: "There should now be a swift transition of the Northern routes into a public sector operation. There can be no excuses for any delay." | RMT general secretary Mick Cash said: "There should now be a swift transition of the Northern routes into a public sector operation. There can be no excuses for any delay." |
| The BBC has approached the DfT for comment. | The BBC has approached the DfT for comment. |