Royal Mail is in talks with a number of rail companies, which may put mail back on the rails.
The Travelling Post Office came to the end of the line in January this year, after more than 160 years of service. The controversial move was attacked by trade unions and environmentalists, who said that it would lead to increased traffic and more pollution on the already overcrowded road network.
The move was in direct contradiction to the government’s policy of encouraging freight companies to switch from road to rail.
Now Royal Mail is in talks with GB Railfreight, English Welsh & Scottish Railway, and others, with a reported possibility of nightly mail trains from London to Warrington, Tyneside and Glasgow.
A Royal Mail spokesman confirmed that the company has been talking to various rail operators for several months to find a commercially viable proposal to revive the services, and is continuing talks with one company, but declined to comment further on the discussions.
