The new December railway timetable for the Thames Valley has been made public for the first time by Great Western Railway, offering faster journey times, and more services to key locations.
Rail users are being asked to check their new journey times ahead of the biggest timetable change on the network since 1976.
50% of GWR's stopping services between Reading and London Paddington will be transferred to Transport for London Rail from Sunday 15 December.
The planned improvements are so significant that GWR has launched an awareness campaign to highlight the changes ahead.
GWR will continue to operate services between Reading and London Paddington calling at intermediate station stops, with many extending to Didcot and being formed of 12 carriage Class 387 electric trains in the evening peak where they are needed most.
These will dovetail with TfL's stopping services to provide an improved overall service with significant extra capacity on the Reading to Paddington corridor.
On the popular Reading to Newbury route, passengers will benefit from an increase to three trains an hour
New Intercity Express Trains already operating between Reading and London Paddington will also see journey time improvements; average direct journey times will consistently be 22 mins, compared to between 25 and 30 minutes today.
Those travelling between Reading and Basingstoke will be able to take advantage of a third train an hour at peak times.
The timetable will come into effect from Sunday 15 December.
What did the officials say?
Paul Britton, Chief Executive of the Thames Valley Chamber of Commerce said:
“An extra 10,000 seats in the morning peak into London Paddington is great news for businesses in the Thames Valley and London. Updated technology, new facilities and reduced journey times for business travellers and commuters will allow them to use their time more effectively.”
Neil Gunnell of Henley Trains added:
“We in the Thames Valley are finally reaping the benefit of the very big but delayed electrification of the Great Western Main Line and newer, bigger and better trains for the commute.”
GWR Managing Director Mark Hopwood said:
“It's just 12 weeks until Sunday December 15, and we have been working hard behind the scenes to prepare to implement the biggest timetable change on this network since 1976, enabling us to take advantage of the full benefits that new Intercity Express Trains are bringing.
“In providing more frequent and quicker journeys, our new timetable will for the vast majority of users quite literally mean ‘all change please' and we are pleased the new timetable has now been published.”
Mike Gallop, route managing director for Network Rail, said:
“The timetable change this December will be the biggest since 1976 and will mean faster journeys and more frequent services for passengers.
“It follows unprecedented investment in railway infrastructure including electrification, improved signalling, upgraded stations and much more which together with the introduction of new trains will transform rail travel.”
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Could Great Western Railway inherit and to use the Class 379 Electrostars once they have been replaced by the Class 745 that Greater Anglia are replacing the Class 379s used on the London Liverpool St-Stansted Airport “Stansted Express” route. And the Class 379 could be able to work along side with the 43 Class 387/1 Electrostars to help boost capacity on GWR London Paddington-Reading, Didcot Parkway and Newbury Thames Valley services and Reading-Newbury shuttle.