I can understand when Arriva handed over the Welsh franchise and stopped being run by them for them not to keep the arrangement of them calling at places like Sandbach for instance (as a side point does anyone know if the TfW guards are still being hired in to operate the Mid Cheshire line? Or has that stopped also?)Very simple for Northern's Manchester-Sheffield stopping service through the Hope Valley. There will be no Northern trains on Saturdays.
No Northern train has run on any strike day. The few East Midlands services that previously made some extra stops no longer do.
The first East Midlands early service from Sheffield to Manchester stops all stations and the last of the day between Manchester and Sheffield provides a train in the opposite direction so there remains very limited connectivity by rail.
East Midlands and TPE fast services operate as normal between the two cities.
But East Midlands Trains has nothing to do with Arriva so why has that stopped?
Is it daft of me to think that as the strikes ramp up and there is less and less PUG's willing to work services that alternative arrangements should be increasing not declining as a result. For instance at the start of the strikes you had the likes of CrossCountry calling additionally at Congleton, and as you say you had East Midlands Trains calling at stations on the Hope Valley line.
I can understand that there has been issues that have cropped up in terms of pathing and calling at these stations, but there is no excuse really for there not to be acceptance on Metrolink now.
Sam