Draft plan to reduce weekday departures from Berwick and Morpeth rail stations to capital cities criticised by Northumberland County Council

Under the new arrangements that will be introduced in December 2024 if confirmed, there would be nine fewer weekday departures between Berwick and London and 10 fewer weekday departures between Berwick and Edinburgh.

Between Morpeth and London, there would be two less weekday departures and one less weekday departure between Morpeth and Edinburgh.

This is despite the plan for more frequent trains running between London and Edinburgh and with other timetable proposals including the train service between Newcastle and Manchester being reduced to one train per hour, it has been claimed that the North East’s rail connectivity has been “sacrificed” in order to improve it for the rest of the country.

Northumberland County Council has pledged to continue to campaign hard for improved rail services for communities located along the East Coast Main Line and beyond.

Council leader Glen Sanderson said: “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 incomes.

“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.

“A regular stop at Morpeth or Berwick on the East Coast Main Line 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.”

Dennis Fancett from the South East Northumberland Rail User Group added: “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 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 wi-fi 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 planned reduction in this service is disappointing for the whole region.”

An LNER spokesperson said: “Plans for the December 2024 timetable are yet to be confirmed. The industry is working together on the proposals and will provide further updates in due course.”

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