Major LNER timetable shake-up sees more trains for York, Doncaster and Leeds - but Bradford loses direct London service
Previously, the service between Harrogate and London King's Cross called at Horsforth only twice a day - once in each direction - but LNER now plan to stop there 14 times per weekday.
Horsforth passengers will be able to board seven trains to London and catch six return services under a massive overhaul of the LNER timetable planned to come into operation from May 2022.
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Hide AdA raft of changes to services at stations across Yorkshire are proposed, with most expected to enjoy an increased number of stopping services to and from the capital.
Yet the shake-up means some destinations miss out - including Bradford Forster Square, which will lose its 8.43am departure to London to allow a more efficient use of the operator's Azuma fleet.
Northallerton has also lost its links to Edinburgh, though rival operator CrossCountry has added in extra stops to plug the gap, and to Doncaster.
Doncaster will have a significantly improved Sunday service, with 100 stopping trains instead of 76, including half-hourly frequency on the Leeds route and more trains to York. Passengers will be able to travel directly to the Scottish cities of Aberdeen, Stirling, Dundee and Inverness without changing trains for the first time. There will be two London departures per hour from Leeds and Wakefield Westgate on Sundays.
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Hide AdA direct London service from Huddersfield via Dewsbury has also been promised, with a likely 5.50am departure and 17.39pm return.
York will receive 18 additional trains to London on weekdays, 16 more on Saturdays and 11 on Sundays, and there will also be three trains per hour to Newcastle and a new direct link to Middlesbrough.
Harrogate's timetable has been amended, with the first London train now leaving an hour earlier.
A public consultation on the proposed timetable changes is currently open for responses.
The changes in full
Doncaster
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Hide Ad- New direct links to Aberdeen, Stirling, Dundee and Inverness
- No more direct trains to Northallerton
- On Sundays, 100 stopping trains instead of 76. Half-hourly service to Leeds and more trains to York
Wakefield Westgate
- One more daily train to London
- Two trains per hour to Leeds and London on Sundays, with a weekday service pattern
Leeds
- Improved Sunday service with two London trains per hour
Huddersfield and Dewsbury
- Direct, once-daily London service to be introduced 'as soon as possible'. Planned departure time 5.50am with 17.39pm return
Bradford Forster Square
- One fewer Bradford-Shipley-London service per day
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Hide Ad- 8.43am Bradford to London departure axed. This was introduced in May 2020, but requires an Azuma to be stabled in Leeds for several hours before the return journey and is not considered an efficient use of stock. Continuing the service would mean shorter trains running on the route
Horsforth
- Increase in stopping trains from two per day to 14
- Seven towards London and six return services
York
- 18 more trains to London on weekdays, 16 more on Saturdays and 11 more on Sundays
- An increase in trains to Newcastle to three per hour
- A new direct link to Middlesbrough
Northallerton
- No more direct services to Edinburgh
Harrogate
- Departures on even rather than odd hours
- First train for London will leave an hour earlier, at 6.35am, and last return will depart from London an hour earlier also, at 16.49pm
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