Harrogate rail passengers have been warned to expect significant disruption to LNER services from October 1 to 9.
Major engineering works in the Newcastle area by Network Rail will affect many services on the LNER route during this period.
LNER operates six daily direct trains from Harrogate to London.
An LNER spokesman said:
“Journeys between Newcastle and Edinburgh will be affected, with some services diverted via the West Coast Main Line or by coach replacement, resulting in longer travel times.
“LNER services to and from Harrogate, Bradford, Lincoln, Middlesbrough, Thornaby, Hull, Selby, Brough and Sunderland will also be affected.
“Customers in these areas should use local services to connect with LNER services on the East Coast Main Line.”
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Some LNER services will also be amended on Monday, October 10 when the work is completed.
Rail strikes are scheduled to take place on October 1 and 5, causing further disruption to passengers on the York to Leeds service, which passes through Harrogate and Knaresborough, among other places.
The LNER spokesman added:
“We are reviewing the impact of this proposed action but expect an extremely limited timetable to be in place.
“During this period, we are advising customers to check before they travel and ensure they have a seat reservation as we are expecting trains to be extremely busy.”
No trains for two days in Harrogate next week as strike action hits
No trains will run through Harrogate and Knaresborough for two days next week as thousands of workers go on strike.
Northern, which operates services through the two towns, has published its timetable for the industrial action on June 21, 23 and 25.
The RMT union has called the strike action over pay and conditions. It will see thousands of drivers, signal operators and guards walk out next week.
In Harrogate and Knaresborough, no trains will run between York and Leeds on Tuesday, June 21, and Thursday, June 23.
However, Northern services are currently expected to run on Saturday, June 25 although the company has warned of disruption and urged people to seek alternative travel.
LNER will also be running no services to London Kings Cross from Harrogate on all three strike days.
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The industrial action on the railways is expected to hit commuters, schools and major events.
The disruption will affect cricket fans travelling to Headingley as England take on New Zealand in the third Test of a three-game series on Thursday.
Trains are expected to run on non-strike days, however Northern warned that services could still be affected.
The company warned passengers earlier this week not to travel on any day between Tuesday and Sunday.
It said in a statement:
“There will be no replacement buses or alternative travel provided.
“On strike days there will be extremely limited availability of both train crew and signalling staff and as such we will not be able to operate services on most routes.
“Unfortunately, as we will not be able to position our fleet how we normally would, the significant impact of the strike will also be felt on non-strike days.
“Therefore, we regrettably advise customers not to travel on any day from Tuesday 21st through to Sunday 26th June.
“Where we are able to operate trains, services will be very limited, and trains will not start as early as normal and will finish much earlier than normal.”
Buses expect surge in demand
Meanwhile, Harrogate Bus Company has said it is expecting additional passengers next week due to the strike action.
Steve Ottley, general manager at the bus company, said:
Stray Views: Turnout for this week’s local election ‘disgusting’“We are expecting additional customers to travel with us next week due to the rail disruption.
“Our advice is to plan ahead of travel, using our Transdev Go app to track your bus before making a journey. Our website and Twitter feed @harrogatebus will be updated across the day with any planned alterations to services.
“We will closely monitor demand and will provide additional capacity where possible with the resources we have available.”
Stray Views is a weekly column giving you the chance to have your say on issues affecting the Harrogate district. It is an opinion column and does not reflect the views of the Stray Ferret. Send your views to letters@thestrayferret.co.uk.
Why didn’t many residents in the district vote?
Where is the curious journalism that wants to know why nearly 70% of eligible residents in the Harrogate district could not raise themselves from their sofa to vote? Why are these people so disenfranchised that they can’t be bothered to put an X on a piece of paper and have an influence on the direction of their own lives? Why is it that I haven’t seen a candidate or an activist canvasing in my area since the EU referendum in 2016?
Did people really vote in numbers for the Liberal Democrats because of a strong ideological belief, was it because they had an inspiring manifesto at a local and national level or was it simply a protest vote from an electorate that will never vote Labour? The truth is no one knows because no one bothers to ask us!
Nobody won today, the political class has been an embarrassment for some time and continues hell bent on its race to the bottom in terms of performance, conduct and perception. Beyond this our town lost its council today and probably its unique identity as a result. The Tories will celebrate their success in taking control of the unitary council and will conveniently forget that an overwhelming majority didn’t actually vote for them at all. For that, us the electorate should be ashamed of our apathy, the low turnout was disgusting.
David, Killinghall Moor
Read more:
The wrong platform
Is it not possible for the London train to depart and arrive into Platform 1 at the main Station Concourse. Everyday railway customers struggle with their luggage up stairs or along the platform to queue for the 2 Lifts.
This does not give a good first impression of Harrogate and does little to help the railway customers.
Surely this can be sorted quickly within the busy timetable. Let’s put the travellers first.
Paul Lawrence, Harrogate
Northern is to cancel the 6.07am train service from Harrogate to Leeds due to declining passenger numbers since the pandemic began.
The 6.07am, which is the first service of the day, arrives at Leeds Station at 6.44am. It is also used by business travellers to get to London King’s Cross before 9am.
The change will come into effect from May 15.
A Northern/LNER service, which goes to London via York and leaves Harrogate at 6.41am and arrives at King’s Cross at 9.36am, will remain on the timetable.
There is a direct LNER train from Harrogate to London at 7.36am but it doesn’t arrive in the capital until 10.32am.
LNER has delayed plans to introduce an earlier direct service that leaves Harrogate at 6.35am due to rolling stock issues.
‘We need it’
With the 6.07am service withdrawn, it means the earliest Harrogate commuters will be able to get into Leeds by train from Monday to Friday will be the 6.56 train, which arrives at 7.28am.
Brian Dunsby, of Harrogate Line Supporters Group, said passenger numbers were back to around 80% of pre-pandemic levels and the early service was needed by commuters.
He called the move by Northern ‘disgraceful’ and urged the state-owned operator to reconsider.
He said:
“The service is particularly important for anyone going down to London for a 9am start.
“They could cancel the 6.56am or the 7.14am instead. That 6.07 is very important. It’s the first train of the day and we need it.”
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A spokesperson for Northern said:
Harrogate man fined for damaging train“We fully understand the concerns of those using our trains in West Yorkshire and we are doing all we can to provide the best possible service for our customers who are very much at the heart of everything we do.”
“We’re seeing fewer commuters travelling each day, and people travelling at different times of the week and for different reasons. We’ve made decisions about our timetables based on the levels of resource we have available and prioritising the routes with the highest customer demand, and which support the region’s economic growth.
“The timetables currently in place will broadly continue with some amendments from May 2022 and into the summer.”
A man from Harrogate has been fined for causing £1,093 worth of damage to a stationary train at Harrogate Station last year.
Michael Anthony Burke, 56, pleaded guilty at York Magistrates Court on Monday to causing criminal damage to a LNER train.
The incident occurred on June 11 last year.
Burke, of Nydd Vale Terrace, was fined £120, ordered to pay a victim’s surcharge of £85 and to pay £85 in costs to the Crown Prosecution Service.
He also pleaded guilty to trespassing on the railway lines.
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Burke also pleaded guilty to attempting to enter Crampton Moore Electronics on Commercial Street, as a trespasser with intent to steal.
The court issued a further community order to Burke for the final two offences.
Improved Harrogate to London train service delayedConcerns over infrastructure and rolling stock have delayed the introduction of improved direct train services between Harrogate and London.
A new timetable, with an earlier direct service to London King’s Cross, was due to be implemented in May 2022.
The shake-up was announced by LNER in June last year as part of wider changes to services on the east coast main line.
LNER said times between Harrogate and London would be about 10 minutes faster as part of the new timetable, which included:
- A service to leave Harrogate earlier, at 6.35am rather than 7.34am.
- A new seventh daily train would leave Harrogate at 6.35pm. On the current schedule, the last train departs at 5.36pm.
In the opposite direction, from London direct to Harrogate:
- Trains would start almost an hour earlier (6.40am rather than 7.33am).
- The final service back would also be earlier, at 4.39pm rather than 5.33pm.
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However, the improved services will now not be introduced after Network Rail recommended that the Department for Transport, which has the final decision on the timetable, delays the implementation.
The organisation said it had “concerns around infrastructure, rolling stock and performance and stakeholder feedback” with the changes.
Simon Leyshon, industry programme director for Network Rail’s east coast route, said it hoped to implement the changes as soon as possible.
He said:
“Postponing the new timetable change for the east coast main line allows us to dedicate more time to considering the views passengers and stakeholders shared with us during the consultation process last year.
“We’re now working closely with train operating companies and the wider rail industry to develop a timetable that meets passenger’s changing travel patterns and makes the most of the increased capacity on the East Coast main line following the £1.2 billion East Coast upgrade.”
Network Rail also pointed out that Harrogate had already seen an additional Northern service introduced on the Leeds to York line in December 2021.
LNER is planning to change its East Coast Main Line timetable from May 2022, with a significant shake-up to services from Harrogate.
The operator currently runs six trains each way between London King’s Cross and Harrogate each day and there are several key changes on the cards.
It says the planned improvements will benefit its fleet of 65 diesel-electric Azuma trains, which use Japanese bullet train technology.
LNER is calling for the public to give feedback on the full timetable over the next eight weeks.
Big changes to and from London
Direct departures from Harrogate to the capital would move from odd hours to even ones:
- The first service would leave earlier, at 6.35am rather than 7.34am
- A new seventh daily train would leave Harrogate at 6.35pm. On the current schedule, the last train departs at 5.36pm.
In the opposite direction, from London direct to Harrogate:
- Trains would start almost an hour earlier (6.40am rather than 7.33am)
- The final service back would also be earlier, at 4.39pm rather than 5.33pm.
- There are no plans to run an extra seventh train from London to Harrogate.
LNER estimates that travel times between Harrogate and London would be about 10 minutes faster.
There would be a new direct daily service to Newark North Gate, but this would come at the expense of the direct Grantham service. Passengers to the south-west Lincolnshire market town would need to change at Leeds or Doncaster.
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The rail company said in its consultation document that the May 2022 timetable’s core structure is fixed, but that “it may be possible to make some local adjustments in response to feedback”.
David Horne, LNER managing director, said:
“Our new consultation gives us the opportunity to hear the views of our customers and communities across LNER’s route on the proposed improvements we’d like to make from next May, including faster services and more seats between London, York Newcastle and Edinburgh.
“We are confident of the future of long-distance rail travel on the East Coast route and that, by delivering to our customers the full benefit of our new trains and upgraded tracks, we can help level-up and connect the country, protect the environment and support our communities and destinations.”
Have your say on the plans here. The consultation is open until August 5.
LNER is to increase the number of trains on its London to Scotland services from tomorrow. The train operator said it would add more than 1,600 seats for customers each weekday compared with the current timetable.
There will an additional 10 services on the London to Scotland line . The company says it is expecting more people to use the trains in the coming weeks and the extra services will help with social distancing.
LNER Managing Director, David Horne, said:
“The changes that we’re introducing from 7 September will increase our service levels from around 75 per cent up to 85 per cent of our pre-covid timetable, so it’s a significant step forward as we welcome more passengers back to our services
“These additional services will also provide a welcome boost to communities along our route, such as Peterborough, York and Newcastle, which are just some of the destinations set to benefit”
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LNER says it has continued to have extra cleaning on trains and at stations. People can only travel if they have reserved a seat to allow passengers to be spaced apart and it remains mandatory to wear a face mask.
LNER said it has supported research done by the Rail Safety and Standards Board (RSSB) which found the risk of covid-19 infection being less than 0.01% on an average journey. Its analysis has shown the risk of contracting coronavirus while travelling by train is about 1 in 11,000 journeys.
LNER has resumed its direct train service from Harrogate to London.
From today, the operator will run six trains in each direction from Monday to Friday as demand rises due to the easing of lockdown restrictions.
Services on the weekend will remain limited.
Passengers must make reservations ahead of travelling and will be allocated a socially distanced seat. LNER also recommend that they wear face coverings in stations and trains.
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Onboard ventilation systems will provide a “continuous supply of fresh air” with the air cycled every six minutes on every train.
The company said extra cleaning is taking place both on stations and onboard trains, with teams using disinfectant and long-lasting virucidal fog.