You won't get everyone back unless trains run at full capacity, say bosses

COMMUTER rail bosses were today urged to restore full rush hour timetables immediately to encourage workers to return to their offices following the lifting of work from home advice.

- Jonathan Prynn and Ross Lydall

Operators such as South West Railway, South-Eastern and Thameslink slashed the number of services in December and earlier this month while the Plan B measures were in place to slow down the spread of the Omicron variant.

Commuter passenger volumes have slumped to around 25 per cent of normal while the WFH guidance remained in force but are now expected to recover.

However, there are fears that service levels could be reduced permanently, deterring workers from returning to their offices in the West End, the City and Docklands and holding back the recovery of central London.