News Release

12th July 2007

COMMUTER TRAIN SERVICE U-TURN FOR THE BETTER

At a meeting held at the House of Commons on Thursday afternoon (12th July) between senior officials from the Department of Transport, the Managing Director of Virgin Trains West Coast (Charles Belcher), representatives of the Lichfield Commuters' Club (Dorcas Batstone and Douglas Neill), and Michael Fabricant, it was agreed that the planned morning commuters Virgin Pendolino Service from Lichfield to London from December 2008 was totally unacceptable. It had been proposed that the existing morning 06.33 and 07.21 services to London would be slashed and be replaced with a Pendolino at 05.58 and another at 06.41 with no later Virgin Pendolino trains.

Following concerted pressure from commuter groups and coordinated by Michael Fabricant, it was agreed at the meeting that there will now be a Virgin Pendolino service to London from Lichfield Trent Valley at 06.41 and a later train at 07.07. There will be return Pendolino services from London back to Lichfield at 16.57, 17.57, 20.30, and 22.00. All the evening return trains - bar the 22.00 service - will have only a 70 minute journey time.

The Pendolino services will be supported by a 7 day timetable of hourly and two hourly services from a new franchise, Govia, offering upgraded Desiro trains south to Northampton, Milton Keynes, Watford, and Euston and north to Stafford, Stoke, and Crewe.

Michael Fabricant says: "This is a major improvement on what was being offered. It was intolerable that after suffering all the disruption due to the 4 tracking of the Trent Valley section north of Lichfield, regular commuters would end up with an inferior service. The new 7.07 is a little earlier than some commuters would have liked, but is probably an acceptable alternative to the existing 7.21 service. Commuters being forced onto an overcrowded 6.41 service with no later Pendolino service would have been unacceptable. In addition, the regular Govia service will put Lichfield in regular direct train contact with our capital and other major cities throughout the seven day week."