CREATIVE rail bosses have come up with a low-tech solution to keep passengers moving — using felt-tip pens

Long-running engineering works began on the line between Manchester and Bolton earlier this month and commuters have fewer trains to choose from at rush hour.

So to help people get to and from work, train provider Northern Rail has got out its coloured pens and is using simple posters at Bolton, Manchester Victoria and Manchester Piccadilly stations.

The hand-drawn illustrations show when trains leave, how many carriages they have and how full each carriage will be.

Passengers can then choose which train to board and know that they could find more space if they board at a particular point.

Although it is a low-tech way of helping customers, Northern is spreading the word using modern technology, by publishing daily pictures of the posters on its Twitter.

A Northern Rail spokesman said: "We wanted something visual to help customers make an informed choice on which service they travel on.

"They're also a great help for our station teams as they can quickly advise customers which service to aim for when they are travelling through the station the morning or evening before.

"The feedback we've had from social media has been positive."

He added: "At the moment, they're at Bolton, Victoria and Piccadilly as a trial.

"When the timetable changes on May 17, we're going to get another batch printed and have up at more stations."