The major recast on the Western leads our review of schedule alterations in December, as PHILIP SHERRATT reports
Not for the first time in recent years, Great Western Railway tops the bill in our round-up of December timetable changes, which take effect from 15 December.
The operator is advertising the biggest timetable change on its network since 1976 as the modernisation programme draws to a conclusion.
The timetable proposals were explained in detail in our Great Western special in August (p62), so what follows is a summary of the highlights.
On high-speed services, the full introduction of the Intercity Express Train (IET) fleet of Hitachi Class 800s and Class 802s enables services to be retimed in tune with the IETs’ better performance, with consequent journey time reductions. In addition, new ‘superfast’ services at peak times will run to Bristol via Bath (first stop Chippenham) and to South Wales (first stop Bristol Parkway), to be followed by off-peak services to Bristol Temple Meads calling only at Bristol Parkway by May 2020.
Extra high-speed services at weekends will enable the weekday pattern to be mirrored more closely.
On the South Cotswold route to Cheltenham, an hourly through London serv…
