Extra trains announced as Grand Central returns after Coronavirus lockdown

Grand Central has now started operating passenger trains once again after four months.

Booking on extra services on the North East route starts on the 23rd of August, and The West Riding route from the 13th of September.

Trial runs of these services have been running to ensure a high standard of hygiene and social distancing to ensure passengers have a safe journey.

Before lockdown, Grand Central was running up to 18 daily services to and from London, with up to 30,000 passengers a week.

Grand Central were also voted the nations favourite train operator in the spring National Rail Passenger Survey.

Managing director Richard McClean said: “Since we announced Grand Central was returning to service on the 26th of July we've been overwhelmed by the messages of support and encouraged by the number of passengers who've already booked journeys with us.”

“We always planned this to be a measured and sensible return to service; we know rail travel has changed a lot since we last welcomed passengers on board in April, but the demand is slowly returning. Adding these extra services also means we're bringing much-needed extra capacity to the rail network, which helps maintain social distancing on board.”

“The Government announced last week that public transport could be used safely with immediate effect. Our objective now is to reassure passengers and build public confidence in rail travel. We've increased our on-board cleaning measures, and we will be helping customers to maintain their distance on the train with signage and new seat labelling.”

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