Concern At Axing Of Sunday Morning Train Services

Harborough’s train operator is being taken to task by passengers disappointed at the axing of two early Sunday services in December.

East Midlands Railway’s new timetable shows the first two southbound trains from Market Harborough – at 07.43am and 08.10am – will no longer run.

The company says the move it part of changes to make other journeys quicker.

Regular rail user Tim Murray told HFM he is surprised by the decision at a time the electrification of the tracks between Kettering and Wigston has just been completed.

He says he has travelled on these services twice in the last four weeks, so has seen first-hand how withdrawing them will inconvenience a large number of travellers:

Market Harborough Railway Station

A spokesperson for East Midlands Railway said: “EMR is making changes to its December 2024 timetable to help improve Intercity Sunday morning journey times.

“Two of the tracks south of Bedford are closed to traffic until 12:00. The December timetable changes will mean this will instead be in place until 09:00. Due to the change, twelve services will see significant improvements, cutting travel time to and from London. The changes are in line with creating a unified railway system and are echoed by the aspirations of Great British Railways.

“To accommodate these changes, Network Rail requires additional access time in the Derby, Nottingham, and Leicester areas, which will result in the cancellation of two early Sunday morning services that serve Market Harborough. This will give Network Rail better access to the tracks to carry out maintenance work to keep trains running safely and reliably. The services which are being removed have frequently been subject to alterations or cancellations – regularly being replaced by a bus. Furthermore, the first long distance train under the new timetable arrives in London just 34 minutes after the first train in the old timetable.

“We understand the concerns raised by Market Harborough customers, who view the removal of these services as a reduction in their morning options; however, these changes are necessary to improve overall network reliability and efficiency. In addition to speeding up twelve journey times, which will lead to more people choosing the railway, the changes will also enable critical engineering work and deliver the taxpayer savings annually – balancing the need for long-term infrastructure improvements with passenger experience.”