UK-based train operator Govia Thameslink Railway (GTR) has launched six new ‘preview’ services that will run across central London on the Thameslink railway system.
The new services are set to connect additional 80 stations in southern England through central London, including Farringdon, City Thameslink and Blackfriars stations.
Go deeper with GlobalData
They comprise introductory services between Cambridge and Brighton, Peterborough and Horsham.
Rail minister Jo Johnson said: “Passengers on the expanded Thameslink route are now starting to see the benefits of almost ten years of hard work, with six new services giving people better connections running between Cambridge and Brighton, Horsham and Peterborough, for the very first time.
“The ambitious £7bn Thameslink programme, sponsored by this government, is delivering extensive infrastructure enhancements, new trains and a new timetable to tackle one of the busiest and most congested parts of the rail network.”
From this May, the trains will run through new tunnels at St Pancras International and are expected to provide transport for 40,000 more passengers, easing the current burden on London’s rail network.
GTR chief operating officer Nick Brown said: “We are massively boosting capacity for 40,000 more passengers each weekday peak this May, rising to 60,000 next year.
“As part of our RailPlan 20/20 modernisation plans, we are building on the foundations laid by the Government-sponsored Thameslink Programme to increase capacity and reliability on Thameslink, Southern and Great Northern, Britain’s most congested railway.”
