I am aware that Northern has staffing issues on Sundays which I understand affect the North West in particular (although I don't know any of the details). But why does it seem that the Blackpool South line is disproportionately affected by this issue (if indeed it is, it just seems that way)? The Blackpool South line now has a 2 hourly service instead of an hourly service on Sundays, which I understand is in response to the staffing issues, but even with the halving of services Northern don't appear to be able to run the full timetable most Sundays. Trains are frequently replaced by buses at relatively short notice, which is obviously better than leaving passengers stranded, but the bus is a lot slower so will mean anyone wanting to meet a particular train at Preston is likely to miss it.
Are these trains more likely to be cancelled because of the availability of the bus replacement hence where staff numbers are limited Northern decide it's preferable to run services where no bus service is readily available?
On the other hand, and again this is just my impression, Sunday cancellations from Blackpool North don't seem to be so bad at the moment (at least compared to a couple of years ago). Also, cancellations Monday to Saturday on the Blackpool South line seem to be less common now. So not all bad news.
Are these trains more likely to be cancelled because of the availability of the bus replacement hence where staff numbers are limited Northern decide it's preferable to run services where no bus service is readily available?
On the other hand, and again this is just my impression, Sunday cancellations from Blackpool North don't seem to be so bad at the moment (at least compared to a couple of years ago). Also, cancellations Monday to Saturday on the Blackpool South line seem to be less common now. So not all bad news.
