The Department for Transport have apparently told the train operators that they should cease offering wifi if they “cannot justify it financially”.
This is a backward step. As the Chief Executive of Transport Focus has said: “Access to wifi is something many passengers now expect as standard. It helps people use their travel time productively and is something which could encourage more people to use rail over other modes.”
Category Archives: Trains
The excellent ianVisits website about London and travel reports that Southeastern have issued a notice to train manufacturers to buy a new fleet of trains, to go into service in late 2027. It seems that these are to replace the … Continue reading
There are significant changes to the timetable for services from Sevenoaks, Dunton Green and Otford from 11 December. The detailed timetables have been published at https://www.southeasternrailway.co.uk/travel-information/live-travel-information/december-timetables and Southeastern kindly gave us a briefing on the concepts behind the new timetable and the main features. We have looked at the timetable in detail and these are our main observations.
Continue readingThe Department for Transport will shortly propose to local MPs an “alternative” Maidstone East service instead of the through Thameslink service original promised from December 2018. We understand that it will be based on the existing Southeastern peak service that runs about hourly to and from Blackfriars.
Any alternative proposal for the Maidstone East line needs to be tested against the benefits offered to the community by the original proposal that is already over two years overdue.
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Our local MP, Laura Trott has arranged a 30 minute public meeting with Rail Minister, Chris Heaton-Harris, about the government’s failure to provide the long awaited Maidstone East to Cambridge fast service. The meeting will start at 17.30 on December 14th 2020.
Continue readingStarting this Saturday, 25 July, and for the whole of next week there will be nine days of changed times, longer journeys and diversions to Southeastern services from Sevenoaks. Basically on the off-peak pattern fast trains on the Ashford/ Ramsgate … Continue reading