Grand Central extends its services suspension until end of June

The firm, which operates from London King’s Cross to stations including Halifax, Mirfield, has been out of action since early April due to collapse in demand caused by the coronavirus pandemic.

Train companies have reported that passenger numbers have been at just five per cent of normal levels during the lockdown.

Owned by transport giant Arriva, it is one of a handful of open access train companies, which have not benefited from the Government’s package of support for franchised operators.

Grand Central’s managing director, Richard McClean, said that unlike franchised operators, they rely on selling tickets to cover running costs.

Mr McClean said: “The safety of our staff and passengers is essential but social distancing rules mean we cannot yet welcome the number of customers needed to run the service sustainably.

“I think over the coming month we’ll get a really informative picture of passenger attitude, Government intentions and how the industry is dealing with social distancing, but for now the most sensible course of action for us is to monitor all this and use the time to plan our return.”