Campaigners say rail timetable 'bad for region'

LNER say the new timetable will mean more seats and faster journeys

A campaign group says a railway line's new timetable is "bad" for north-east England.

South East Northumberland Rail User Group (SENRUG) understands the changes to the East Coast Main Line, due to come into operation in December 2025, mean Morpeth will lose three LNER northbound and two southbound services, as well as a "vital" commuter service from Alnmouth.

The train operator LNER said the timetable would improve connectivity between the North East and London, and provide more services between Middlesbrough and Newcastle.

Managing director David Horne said: "We will provide more trains, thousands more seats and quicker journeys."

According to the published timetable for December 2025, Alnmouth will lose one of its busiest commuter services

The new timetable would mean most trains between Newcastle and London would be quicker.

There will also be more TransPennine Express services between Newcastle, Morpeth, Alnmouth, Berwick and Edinburgh Waverley.

But connections between smaller stations will be less frequent in some cases with, for example, fewer direct trains from Durham to Alnmouth and Edinburgh.

Chester-le-Street will have fewer services to Darlington, Durham and Newcastle.

LNER said the timetable would improve connectivity between the North East and London

Mr Fancett, chair of SENRUG, said: "Whilst we support providing more train capacity between London and Edinburgh, this should not be achieved by reducing services in Northumberland, which is bad for the region.

"Morpeth loses five LNER services and Alnmouth also loses the vital 08:10 CrossCountry service to Newcastle, vital for commuters and those going to college."

Shipping lawyer Mark Church, who uses the Alnmouth train every day, said: "The train has always been incredibly busy, up to 100 people get on at Alnmouth every day.

"It's so ridiculous, you feel it must be a mistake.

"The timetable from Alnmouth makes no sense, you have times when there are three trains close together, then long periods with no services at all."

Lawyer Mark Church takes the 08:10 from Alnmouth to Newcastle, which will disappear according to the new timetable

Mr Fancett wants "tweaks to be made" so the timetable "delivers a fair deal to Northumberland".

"The changes cannot be justified by cutting 10 minutes off a London to Edinburgh journey," he said.

In a statement, LNER said: "We will continue to serve Alnmouth, Berwick-upon-Tweed and Morpeth with services throughout the day.

"We recognise the industry's enhancements may not satisfy everyone, but the proposed timetable will be of benefit to the greatest number of customers across the north."

A CrossCountry spokesperson said: "As an industry, we plan timetable changes meticulously for years in advance.

"We have worked closely with other train operators and Network Rail to ensure the best possible service for customers in the North East and across the country."