CrossCountry passengers are being warned to expect a difficult post-Christmas travel weekend, as the long-distance operator has cautioned that services on Saturday 27 and Sunday 28 December could face additional short-notice cancellations due to train crew availability constraints.

Combined with heavier-than-usual loads on key inter-regional routes, the warning heightens the risk of missed connections at Birmingham New Street and other major hubs for travellers heading across Britain.

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Operator warns of crew shortages and busy trains

CrossCountry has advised that train crew availability remains tight over the festive period, with some services already being curtailed or cancelled at short notice in the run-up to Christmas.

While a normal base timetable is scheduled to operate on the weekend of 27 and 28 December, the operator is cautioning that unplanned cancellations may still be required if drivers or on-board staff are not available.

The operator’s latest travel information highlights that constraints on train crew availability have already led to late changes to the service pattern on several days immediately before Christmas, particularly on core corridors such as Cardiff to Nottingham via Birmingham and long-distance flows into Manchester, Leeds and the North East.

That pattern, rail industry sources suggest, is likely to continue into the final weekend of December as staff rostering is stretched by peak holiday demand, sickness and a backlog of mandatory medical checks for some train crew.

In addition to the risk of cancellations, CrossCountry is warning that its trains will be busier than usual as thousands of people complete Christmas visits or head to major cities for shopping and leisure trips.

Overcrowding has already been reported on some flagship services, with passengers on long routes from Bristol to Edinburgh and from the South West to Scotland and the North East facing standing-room-only conditions for extended periods.

Impact on long inter-regional routes via Birmingham

The combination of heavy passenger loads and fragile staffing levels is expected to be felt most sharply on CrossCountry’s long inter-regional services, many of which converge on Birmingham New Street.

The station functions as the central hub of the network, with through trains linking destinations including Penzance, Plymouth, Bristol, Cardiff, Reading and Southampton in the south and west to Manchester, Leeds, Newcastle, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Dundee and Aberdeen in the north.

Even on a normal day, these cross-country routes are tightly timed and vulnerable to knock-on delays when services are altered or withdrawn. With late-notice cancellations now more likely, the risk of missed connections increases for passengers who rely on cross-platform or short-interval transfers at Birmingham and other key interchanges such as Derby, Sheffield and York.

A cancelled or heavily delayed CrossCountry service can leave travellers stranded mid-journey, particularly in the evening when alternative options are limited.

Any reduction in capacity on one leg of a long journey can also cascade along the route. If a train is short-formed or one portion is locked out of use because there are not enough staff to cover the full length of the service, the remaining coaches can quickly become overcrowded.

That in turn slows down boarding and alighting at intermediate stops, further eating into the timetable margin and increasing the chance that onward connections are missed.

Engineering work compounds disruption risk

The challenges created by staff shortages and festive crowds are being compounded by extensive planned engineering work across parts of the network on the same weekend.

National Rail has confirmed that on Saturday 27 December buses will replace trains on several sections used by CrossCountry, including between Ely and Stansted Airport and between Birmingham New Street, Water Orton and Coleshill Parkway, with amended services on routes involving Leeds and York.

On Sunday 28 December further restrictions continue around Leeds and Stansted Airport, with long-distance CrossCountry services diverted or reduced.

In the North West, separate works around Crewe and on the North Wales Coast and Shrewsbury corridor will affect other operators across the wider rail system, potentially reducing the flexibility available for rerouting passengers if they miss a CrossCountry service at key junctions. CrossCountry trains themselves are being diverted away from Crewe on certain days, altering usual journey patterns and timetables.

Over the longer term, the major Transpennine Route Upgrade between Leeds and York is driving a series of closures and diversions that affect CrossCountry services between the South West, the Midlands, Yorkshire, the North East and Scotland.

From late December into January, this work results in a reduced and slower service between Leeds and York, with some CrossCountry trains diverted via Castleford and fewer calls at Wakefield Westgate and Leeds.

Although the operator has attempted to maintain connectivity by allowing ticket acceptance on other companies’ trains between Leeds and York, the constrained capacity on that corridor means any short-notice CrossCountry cancellation could have a greater impact than usual.

Industrial action cancelled, but timetable still fragile

In the weeks leading up to Christmas, CrossCountry passengers had been braced for severe disruption on all Saturdays in December due to planned industrial action by the RMT union. That strike plan was suspended in early December, allowing the operator to reinstate a nominally normal timetable on Saturdays 6, 13, 20 and 27 December.

However, the short timeframe to rebuild services, combined with ongoing crew availability issues and heavy seasonal demand, has left the service pattern fragile even in the absence of a formal strike.

CrossCountry’s own press statements have acknowledged that despite the cancellation of the RMT action, short-notice cancellations remain possible as the company works to crew all services.

Senior management have pointed to the complexity of reinstating trains at short notice, especially on a network that depends on long, interlinked diagrams for both trains and staff. Any unexpected crew absence can have knock-on effects throughout the day because suitable replacements may not be in the right location or may already have reached their legal working hour limits.

The operator has also highlighted the role of planned engineering works, which require diversions, longer journey times and in some cases rail replacement buses. Each of these factors can disrupt normal staff diagrams, complicating efforts to make full use of available crews. As a result, even where a full base timetable is scheduled, the practical day-to-day operation of that timetable remains under pressure.

Passenger experiences highlight strain on the network

Recent passenger reports from across the CrossCountry network paint a picture of a system operating close to its limits. Travellers have described long-distance services being split en route, with one portion locked out of use due to staff shortages, leaving the remaining coaches significantly overcrowded.

In one case, passengers on a Bristol to Edinburgh train were asked to vacate the rear portion at York, resulting in standing conditions for many on the remaining four coaches for the final two hours of the journey.

Other accounts highlight a pattern of trains arriving just under key delay-repay thresholds, with some travellers alleging that arrival times are logged to show delays of 29 minutes rather than 30 minutes or more.

While there is no independent confirmation of systematic practices of this sort, such perceptions contribute to a sense of frustration among regular users of CrossCountry services, especially when combined with crowding, short-notice cancellations and limited alternative options for long cross-country journeys.

On social media, complaints in the days before Christmas have focused on a mixture of issues, including reduced capacity on some trains, late notifications of cancellations, and confusion about which portion of a service passengers should board when trains are divided or partially locked out.

For travellers with luggage, children or reduced mobility, rapid platform changes and last-minute alterations can be particularly challenging, especially at major hubs such as Birmingham New Street where information boards can change quickly as control teams adjust the plan in real time.

Advice for travellers over the 27–28 December weekend

Rail industry bodies and passenger groups are urging anyone planning to use CrossCountry on Saturday 27 or Sunday 28 December to build additional time into their itineraries and to avoid planning tight connections.

Where possible, travellers are advised to choose earlier departures, particularly for long-distance journeys that require one or more changes at Birmingham, Derby, Sheffield, York or other interchange points.

Passengers are being encouraged to check journey planners on the day of travel and repeatedly before departure, as real-time updates will reflect any short-notice cancellations or amendments. While advance tickets remain valid on the booked trains, operators typically offer flexibility during periods of disruption, and staff at stations can help rebook itineraries or advise on alternative routes if connections are missed.

Those travelling with flexible off-peak tickets benefit from the temporary relaxation of time restrictions over the festive period, which allows travel at any time on many days surrounding Christmas and New Year.

This makes it easier for passengers to shift their journeys to quieter times of day or to avoid the final trains of the evening, which may be more vulnerable to cancellation or heavy crowding.

Consumer advocates also recommend that passengers familiarise themselves with their rights to compensation in the event of delays or cancellations. Most train operators, including CrossCountry, offer delay repay schemes where customers can claim back part or all of the cost of their ticket if they arrive at their final destination more than a specified number of minutes late.

Keeping photos of departure boards, tickets and arrival times can help support such claims if there is any dispute about the extent of a delay.

Outlook for CrossCountry into the New Year

Beyond the immediate pressures of the post-Christmas weekend, CrossCountry faces a challenging few weeks as it navigates the introduction of the December 2025 timetable, major engineering works and ongoing crew availability issues.

The new timetable, which formally began on 14 December, includes an uplift in services on busy corridors such as Reading to Newcastle and Birmingham to Leicester, and is intended to provide a more robust Sunday service and improved connectivity across the network.

However, the full benefits of those changes will not be realised until late January or February, once the heaviest phase of Christmas and New Year engineering work is complete. In the interim, CrossCountry will be running a hybrid pattern of new and diverted services, with some routes subject to longer journey times and altered stopping patterns.

This transitional period, combined with high seasonal demand and lingering staffing constraints, is likely to keep pressure on punctuality and reliability into early 2026.

Industry analysts note that CrossCountry’s operating model, which spans long, inter-regional routes across much of Britain, leaves it particularly exposed to systemic issues such as infrastructure failures, timetable changes and staff shortages.

Unlike operators focused on shorter, more self-contained commuter routes, CrossCountry has fewer opportunities to reset its service during the day, meaning problems in one part of the network can ripple widely. Addressing those vulnerabilities, they say, will require a combination of better timetable design, targeted investment in rolling stock and staffing, and closer coordination with infrastructure managers and other train operators.

FAQ

Q1: What exactly has CrossCountry warned about for Saturday 27 and Sunday 28 December?
CrossCountry has cautioned that, although a normal base timetable is scheduled, services on those dates could face additional short-notice cancellations due to train crew availability constraints, and that trains are likely to be busier than usual.

Q2: Which routes are most at risk of disruption over this weekend?
The greatest risk is on long inter-regional routes that pass through Birmingham New Street, including services linking the South West, South Coast and South Wales to the Midlands, Yorkshire, the North East and Scotland, as well as key flows involving Manchester, Leeds and Newcastle.

Q3: Why are there crew availability problems at this time of year?
Rail industry sources point to a combination of seasonal factors such as holidays and higher sickness levels, a tight staffing base on some depots, and a backlog of mandatory medicals and competency checks for certain train crew, all of which reduce the flexibility to cover unexpected absences.

Q4: How do engineering works interact with the risk of cancellations?
Engineering works force trains onto longer, diverted routes or onto replacement buses, which disrupts normal staff and rolling stock diagrams. That makes it harder to redeploy crews when something goes wrong and can increase journey times, leaving less margin to recover from delays.

Q5: What can passengers do to reduce the risk of missed connections?
Travellers are advised to avoid tight connections, choose earlier trains where possible, allow extra time between legs of their journey, and keep checking real-time journey planners on the day of travel so they can adapt quickly if a service is cancelled or delayed.

Q6: Are tickets more flexible over the festive period?
Yes, CrossCountry has temporarily lifted many off-peak ticket restrictions around Christmas and New Year, allowing holders of those tickets to travel at any time of day within the validity period, which can help passengers move to less crowded or more reliable services.

Q7: What compensation is available if my train is heavily delayed or cancelled?
Under standard delay repay schemes, passengers can usually claim a refund of part or all of their fare if they arrive at their final destination a specified time late, often starting from 15 or 30 minutes. The exact thresholds and refund levels depend on the ticket type and the operator’s policy.

Q8: How late are trains currently running on average?
Punctuality figures vary by day and route, but recent anecdotal reports from passengers suggest that some CrossCountry services have been arriving around 25 to 30 minutes behind schedule, particularly on long-distance routes affected by crowding and diversions.

Q9: Will the new December 2025 timetable improve reliability?
The timetable is designed to strengthen some busy corridors and provide more resilient Sunday services, which should help reliability in the medium term. However, its benefits are partially deferred until after major engineering works finish, so short-term performance may remain volatile.

Q10: Where can passengers find the most up-to-date information before travelling?
The latest details on service alterations, engineering works and real-time running information are available through national journey planners, station departure boards and official operator communication channels, which passengers are strongly advised to consult repeatedly before and during their journey.