There's a mad Northern service running directly between Manchester Vic and Wigan NW once-hourly via Lowton Junction. It doesn't stop at intermediate stops, and it's always empty when I see it.
Today it consisted of a 4 carriage 156. Meanwhile Blackburn to Rochdale is formed of a single 150, and it's no doubt going to be full to bursting at some point during its run.
What am I missing? Why allocate scarce resources to such an arbitrary and underutilised run, when Northern already has 4x trains an hour connecting the stations via Swinton and Westhoughton respectively?
Today it consisted of a 4 carriage 156. Meanwhile Blackburn to Rochdale is formed of a single 150, and it's no doubt going to be full to bursting at some point during its run.
What am I missing? Why allocate scarce resources to such an arbitrary and underutilised run, when Northern already has 4x trains an hour connecting the stations via Swinton and Westhoughton respectively?