Published on: Friday, 4 October 2019
Last updated: Friday, 4 October 2019
Rail passengers using Greater Anglia’s intercity service between Norwich and London are advised to check before they travel this autumn as some trains will leave earlier than usual until mid-December.
From Monday 7 October until Friday 13 December, intercity trains leaving Norwich, Diss, Stowmarket, Ipswich, and Manningtree before 7.30am will depart up to five minutes earlier, Monday to Friday only.
Customers can check the Greater Anglia website - under service alterations or timetables - or the app for revised timings. They are also published in the Timetable 4 leaflet, which is available at stations.
The changes, which are made every year, are brought in to ensure that customers still arrive in London on time in the autumn, when compacted fallen leaves create black ice like conditions on railway tracks.
Altered timings give train drivers more time to brake and accelerate in the slippery conditions caused by compacted leaves.
It is one of a range of measures Greater Anglia and Network Rail take during autumn to maintain reliability and punctuality, including sanding rails – similar to gritting roads in icy conditions - and cutting back vegetation.
Jay Thompson, Greater Anglia train service delivery director said: “We know how important it is to our customers that their trains run on time.
“Compacted leaves on railway tracks are the equivalent of icy conditions on the roads, so we need a few extra minutes in the timetable to make sure we can get our customers to London on time.”
Posters advertising the revised timings are on display at affected stations and the new timetables are available online.