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Rail services will be cut by up to half under radical proposals to slash costs after Britain was plunged into a third coronavirus lockdown.
Plans are being finalised to introduce an emergency timetable that cuts service levels to between 50 and 60pc of pre-pandemic levels for up to three months, The Telegraph understands.
The changes are expected to mirror a so-called “Sunday-plus” service introduced in March last year as the first wave of the virus struck.
At that time, the Government effectively nationalised the railways by guaranteeing operators made a profit in return for keeping services running for key workers.
Although timetables were restored over the summer, rail franchising has been permanently cancelled and replaced with an outsourced model that shifts the burden of funding services onto taxpayers.
The rail industry bailout is expected to top £9bn in the year to March 2021.
Rail operators remain under pressure to cut costs but are unable to make timetable changes without the consent of the Department for Transport.
It is thought that scaling down current service levels will take between 10 days and a fortnight.
As Boris Johnson used a television address to announce a third lockdown on Monday night, some operators were already running empty services.
The new lockdown has closed schools and forced all non-essential retailers to shut their doors from Tuesday, along with gyms, hairdressers, sports facilities, pubs and restaurants.
The Prime Minister told the nation to stay at home and to only go out for work if it was not possible to work from home; to shop for essentials; to exercise; to provide care; or for medical appointments.
Rail bosses fear that the restrictions will lead to a repeat of passenger numbers falling by 95pc, as happened in March. “Supply and demand are poles apart,” said one senior industry source.
The prospect of spending billions of pounds of taxpayer money to run what Grant Shapps, the Transport Secretary, coined “ghost trains” is not the only concern thought to be worrying rail bosses.
The new restrictions are expected to place significant pressure on staff availability, with scores of employees likely to be unable to make it to work.
With coronavirus leading to a shift in working patterns, questions remain whether rail passenger numbers will ever return to pre-pandemic levels.
Industry projections made last summer forecast it could take up to five years for demand to return. The Telegraph revealed last month that ministers were already considering proposals to axe up to one in five train services when new timetables were due to be introduced in May.
While this work is thought to be continuing, it is unclear what impact the implementation of a three-month emergency timetable will have on such changes.
Cuts to train services have led to fresh scrutiny over the need for the Government's controversial HS2 rail scheme.
Andrew Stephenson, the minister responsible for HS2, and its chief executive Mark Thurston will be questioned by the Transport select committee on Wednesday on whether Covid has weakened the case for building the £106bn rail link.
The Government has been contacted for comment.
Separately, airlines began reducing domestic services after the new lockdown was announced.
EasyJet said it was prioritising connections to key cities and a "small number of international routes", while travel operator Tui said package holidays would be halted until mid-February.
British Airways said it will keep crucial links open and Wizz said it will keep routes under review so that supply met demand.