TRAIN operator Wrexham & Shropshire, which links Banbury with London, Shrewsbury and Wales, is reducing the number of services it runs from next month.

The firm, which operates without a Government subsidy and relies on fares paid by passengers to cover all its costs, says the trains affected are too lightly-used to be profitable.

Two off-peak services in each direction on weekdays and Saturdays will be combined into one.

Managing director Andy Hamilton said: “Our position as a train operator working without subsidy means that our viability is directly affected by passenger numbers. We have several trains that are not being used sufficiently to justify continuing to run them.

"The change will not affect travel for over 70 per cent of our passengers and will allow us to focus our resources on growing our business where demand is greatest. We know that some customers will be inconvenienced, and for that we apologise."

For full details, see the company’s website.