Southeastern has announced that timetable changes coming this month will bring shorter journey times on some Highspeed and Mainline services, with better connections at key stations as well as changes to train lengths.

Reduced journey times on a number of Highspeed services will save time for many passengers with passengers from Margate, Ramsgate and Canterbury West set to benefit most.

The train operator will also be bringing forward the changes proposed to reduce Mainline journey times by building on the reductions we made in May 2019.

Southeastern has also listened to passengers from the timetable consultation who said that they wanted to see improved connections wherever possible.

Changes being made this December will make connections between many services quicker and more efficient at a number of key stations, including from Ramsgate to London St Pancras and London Victoria, connections at Grove Park to and from the Bromley North branch and connections at Swanley for passengers from Shoreham and Eynsford.

Additionally, Southeastern will be improving on:

• A growth in passenger numbers at some London stations means that we need to increase journey times to allow more time for our passengers to safely board trains at peak times – meaning that the service is more reliable and subject to fewer delays as a result. The increase will be no more than one minute Monday – Friday, and no more than two minutes on Sundays. These stations are: Brixton, West Dulwich, Sydenham Hill and Peckham Rye.
• Changes to train lengths will better allocate our train fleet to the busiest services, alleviating overcrowding with extra carriages. To enable us to do this we will be shortening trains on services where capacity is less needed, or where its current capacity is only fully used for a short part of its journey.
• More modern, longer trains will be used on the Sittingbourne-Sheerness branch line, spreading the benefits of newer trains across our network.
• As part of Southeastern’s commitment to supporting passengers with reduced mobility, all train services will comply with the Department for Transport’s accessibility requirements from January 1 2020.

What did the officials say?

David Statham, Southeastern’s Managing Director said:

“We’re always wanting to do more for our passengers, with the revision of and improvements to our timetable being an ongoing process. We’ve listened to the feedback of our stakeholders and passengers, whose views are invaluable to us in helping ensure we’re making changes which will deliver the greatest benefit to our passengers.

“We’re building on the success of May’s timetable change by delivering further improvements for passengers and achieving the most benefits to the greatest number of people. Where possible, we’ve shortened some journeys and re-allocated trains to ensure better spread across our network – but we’ve had to make some journeys slightly longer in the London area to ensure everyone can use the railway as safely as possible.

“As always, our message to passengers ahead of the new timetable is check before you travel, as your train times may change.”

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