More trains, more seats for Northampton passengers as rail operator restores more services from next month

Northampton will get more trains and more seats on London Northwestern Railway services from next month.

A new timetable, which comes into effect on September 6, will see available space on board increased in time as schools return and workplaces reopen, returning capacity on LNR services to near pre-pandemic levels.

London Northwestern's customer experience director, Lawrence Bowman, said: “We’re adding thousands of extra seats to give our customers the space to travel with confidence."

All rail operators slashed services in March in response to the Covid-19 lockdown with passenger numbers dropping by 95 per cent.

London Northwestern has tweaked services on its London Euston-Northampton-Birmingham route twice since May. But the latest changes are the most significant step up in rail capacity since lockdown and will see the introduction of longer trains running modular routes to boost reliability. Among the key changes are:

■ More services begin and end their journey at Northampton, creating increased reliability and aiding social distancing

■ Longer trains on many services to and from London Euston, including 12-carriage services from Milton Keynes and Watford Junction

■ Peak services reinstated on the Marston Vale Line between Bletchley and Bedford and the Abbey Line to St Albans following suspension due to the impact of coronavirus

■ Capacity at Watford Junction before 7am will be increased to adjust to earlier working patterns for London commuters

■ Services from Liverpool will continue to operate hourly, terminating at Birmingham rather than London Euston to improve reliability and will be doubled to form eight-carriage trains

Mr Bowman added: “This timetable is the most significant step up in our capacity since lockdown.

“We’ve taken all the aspects which made our lockdown timetable work so well and expanded them as increasing numbers of customers continue returning to the railway. This simpler timetable aims to be more reliable for passengers with longer trains to help social distancing wherever we can.

“We know that coronavirus will continue to impact our lives and workplaces for some time to come but by creating a resilient, flexible timetable we can help our customers adjust to their new normal.”

Passengers are also being reminded that wearing a face covering is compulsory on trains and in stations unless exempt for medical reasons. Non-compliance is punishable by a fine from the British Transport Police.

New timetables are in journey planners now.

East Midlands Railway is also restoring services from Corby, Kettering and Wellingborough to London St Pancras and says it will be running 97 per cent of its pre-coronavirus timetable from September 6.