THOUSANDS of commuters in Hereford and Worcester could be reaping the benefits of a restructured train service to London Paddington next month.

Train operators First Great Western and First Great Western Link have launched a new timetable, effective from Sunday, December 12, which they hope will offer better punctuality and less crowding.

"Performance across both companies has been improving and it is anticipated that the new timetable will lead to further increases," said Alison Forster, managing director of First Great Western and First Great Western Link.

"As well as better punctuality and reliability, customers will enjoy shorter journey times on some routes, increased capacity during peak time services, to alleviate overcrowding and improved connections with other operators wherever possible.

"Long distance services will now be running on dedicated 125mph lines and local 90mph services will use local lines, so avoiding the conflict associated with both running on the same piece of track.

Investment

"We have invested in additional high speed trains that will enable more routes to have InterCity quality services for the first time.

"This is the most prolific timetabling change to services operating to and from London Paddington in more than a decade and is part of our on-going commitment to provide the very best travel experience for our customers."

For information, log on to www.firstgreatwestern.co.uk or call 08457 484950.