Greater Anglia update
Travel advice and timetables – changes from 5th April;
There will be changes to travel advice so, although customers will be asked to minimise journeys wherever possible, the advice will be that rail travellers who are making journeys can travel with confidence, knowing that we are taking all the appropriate steps to make their journey safe, clean and straight forward. Full details of the current coronavirus advice and guidance are available on the government website.
Recognising the changes in travel patterns as wider restrictions are altering, we are making some changes to timetables from next week and adding in more services where appropriate. An hourly service all day will therefore resume on the following routes :
- Norwich to Great Yarmouth, Lowestoft, Sheringham and Cambridge
- Ipswich to Felixstowe, Lowestoft and Cambridge
- Marks Tey to Sudbury
- Wickford to Southminster
- Colchester to Walton-on-the-Naze
- Manningtree to Harwich
However, the half-hourly weekday peak services between Norwich and Great Yarmouth will not be reinstated at this point.
From Monday 12 April, the following intercity services between Norwich and London Liverpool Street will be reinstated on Mondays to Fridays only:
- 05.30/06.48 Norwich to London Liverpool Street
- 07.55/09.00 London Liverpool Street to Norwich
Details of the current timetables in place across our network are available on our website and we are continuing to review passenger numbers and wider feedback from stakeholders to check whether any further changes are needed. The next changes are likely to be in mid-May when we are due to reach the next stage of the “roadmap” changes, but we will keep on closely monitoring services to see if any intermediate changes are necessary and confirm when any further alterations are taking place.
In the meantime, we remain focused on maintaining an excellent standard of service for everyone taking the train. Our actions are in line with our safer travel pledge, which includes providing appropriate services and capacity, additional cleaning, making it easier to keep your hands clean and providing information to help you travel safely.
It remains mandatory for customers to wear a face covering when using public transport, in stations as well as on trains, to help reduce the spread of coronavirus. Children under the age of 11 and people with a disability or medical condition which means they cannot wear a face covering are exempt from wearing them. The vast majority of people are complying with the requirements, but the British Transport Police do have the power to impose fines of £200 for non-compliance, rising to a maximum of £6400 for repeated non-compliance, if necessary. The government is also encouraging everyone to download the Covid-19 Test and Trace App as part of the wider efforts to prevent the spread of the virus.
We continue to deliver our additional cleaning measures - including more train cleaners, new PacVac equipment for turnaround train cleaning during the day and special testing equipment to carry out random hygiene tests on trains (to help us raise standards even further) - as well as cleaning every single carriage with fogging guns (which disinfect all surfaces, including seats, arm rests, grab handles and windows) to supplement the extra cleaning already being implemented in these high contact areas. We have also been carrying our random checks for coronavirus on our trains, with no traces found on any test to date, and extra cleaning at stations, where the fogging guns come in handy for larger indoor areas, such as waiting rooms.
It’s still really important to observe social distancing. We have in place a wide range of actions to make it easier for customers to do so at stations and on trains - including floor markings, one-way systems, signage and queueing systems.
Jonathan Denby
Head of Corporate Affairs