Northumberland County Council has pledged to continue to campaign hard for improved rail services for communities located along the east coast mainline and beyond. 
 

This week LNER revealed its new East Coast Mainline timetable which shows a disappointing reduction in the number of trains serving Morpeth and Berwick. 
 

Councillor Glen Sanderson said the new timetable “Sacrifices the North east’s rail connectivity in order to improve it for the rest of the country.” 

The introduction of the controversial timetable had been deferred from May 2023 after the North East Joint Transport Committee deemed it wholly unacceptable. It is now being introduced, but with very little improvement to the original timetable. 
 

While there will be more frequent trains running between London and Edinburgh, not all trains will stop at Morpeth or Berwick – services the council has been fighting hard for, to serve these key population centres. 

 

Under the new arrangements to be introduced in December 2024 there will be nine fewer weekday departures between Berwick and London and ten fewer weekday departures between Berwick and Edinburgh. Between Morpeth and London there will be two less weekday departures and one less weekday departure between Morpeth and Edinburgh. 

 

Under other timetable proposals, the train service between Newcastle and Manchester is to be reduced to one train per hour. 

 

Leader of Northumberland County Council, Glen Sanderson said: 

“This council along with other local authorities in the region has been lobbying hard over a long period of time for an improved service and capacity on our local rail networks. 
 

“We have seen the draft timetable and feel it is just not good enough. It sacrifices the North east’s rail connectivity in order to improve it for the rest of the country. 
 

“It is extremely important that we have regular rail services so residents in our rural communities can access work, education and leisure opportunities. This is particularly important for the young, the elderly and those on lower income. A regular stop at Morpeth or Berwick on the east coast mainline would just add a few minutes to the journey time of rail passengers. I just cannot understand their reasoning and we will continue to lobby for these services. 
 

“Cutting the service goes against everything we are trying to achieve in helping and encouraging more people to take up public transport for a whole raft of reasons including the protection of our environment.  
 

“This council is leading and investing heavily on the project to bring rail services back to the Northumberland Line, and transform rail connectivity in the south east of the county. It is very disappointing that LNER is not taking this opportunity to improve its services in Northumberland too.” 
 

Dennis Fancett from the South East Northumberland Rail User Group said: 

“What we want is better connectivity without train changes.  Many business people use the rail network and are able to work on the trains with Wi-Fi connectivity. When they have to stop and change trains or wait for long periods of time on train platforms, then rail travel becomes arduous and inconvenient and in addition business time and productivity is lost.” 
 

“The ability to travel from Morpeth to locations such as Peterborough without changing trains is more important than shaving a few minutes off the overall journey time. With better WiFi on board, time on the train is not time lost to business, but time changing trains is.“
 

“The London to Edinburgh rail network isn’t the only destination we need to get to. Many people want to head west to Manchester and the reduction in this service is disappointing for the whole region.” 

“Providing a comprehensive rail timetable is essential to encourage more people to use public transport.” 

On a more positive note, the council welcomed an announcement from the government of further investment in the East Coast Main Line which it is said will increase the capacity of the rail network in the future. 

The North East Joint Transport Network has been continuing to make the case for the government to invest in the East Coast Main Line in the region so that there is enough capacity for all of the services that need to use it, now and in the future. 

In a letter sent this week by Huw Merriman, Minister for Transport confirmation has been given that funding for the East Coast Main Line capacity works has been specifically included in the Rail Network Enhancements Pipeline. 
 

While this funding has to go through the approval processes it shows a strong commitment to invest further in the rail network and the North East Joint Transport Network will continue to campaign to ensure this investment is realised.