The Anonymous Widower

How Will The East Coast Main Line Timetable Change Affect Sheffield?

This article in the October 2025 Edition of Modern Railways is entitled Industry Gears Up For December ECML Timetable Change.

This is the first paragraph.

Major changes are planned to trains along the East Coast main line from 14 December as the long-heralded timetable takes effect.

In this post, I will see how the changes detailed in the article in Modern Railways will affect Sheffield and Doncaster.

Aberdeen-Edinburgh

This is said about Aberdeen and Edinburgh services.

Monday-Saturday services will not change between Aberdeen and Edinburgh, with all intermediate stations served at similar times.

The LNER service to and from King’s Cross will call additionally at Doncaster, Newark Northgate and Peterborough; the last LNER Monday-Friday departure from Aberdeen will terminate at Doncaster instead of Leeds, and the first LNER Monday-Saturday train to Aberdeen will start from King’s Cross at 05:48 instead of Leeds.

Note.

1. An hourly fast train between Edinburgh and King’s Cross will have a journey time of 4 hours and 10 minutes, which is a saving of at least 12 minutes.
2. There is an Aberdeen-Manchester air service, but no Edinburgh-Manchester or Leeds-Scotland air services.
3. In Could London And Central Scotland Air Passengers Be Persuaded To Use The Trains?, I speculated about how air passengers could be tempted to use the trains between London and Central Scotland.
4. It looks to me, that LNER are strengthening their services between Doncaster and Scotland.
5. Will that 05:48 King’s Cross departure for Aberdeen, enable a working day in Aberdeen and return?

Is LNER’s aim to get travellers to use the trains between Doncaster and Scotland, as an alternative to driving or trains from Leeds?

Alnmouth and Berwick

This is said about Alnmouth services.

Quicker LNER journey times are promised to stations South of York, with King’s Cross-Alnmouth journey times up to 15 minutes quicker.

More TPE trains will run between Newcastle, Morpeth, Alnmouth, Berwick, Reston, Dunbar, East Linton and Edinburgh Waverley.

The number of trains calling at Durham on weekdays will fall from 18 to 13 Southbound and from 15 to 10 Northbound.

This is said about Berwick services.

LNER trains will call every two hours during the middle of the day, and the number of weekday trains to King’s Cross falls from 15 to 11 Southbound with a 13 to nine fall Northbound. More TPE trains will call.

Note.

1. Lumo serves Newcastle, Morpeth and Edinburgh.
2. Reston and East Linton are new stations.
3. The stations between Newcastle and Edinburgh need adequate parking to attract commuters.

It looks to me, that LNER are timing the trains to attract day trips along the East Coast Main Line.

Bradford Forster Square/Interchange

This is said about Bradford Forster Square services.

The number of weekday trains will remain as per May 2025, but on Sundays, the number of trains serving Forster Square increases from two to six each way on a two-hourly interval. LNER stopping patterns change, with fewer trains calling at Peterborough and none at Grantham or Retford.

Trains currently stop at Peterborough, Doncaster, Wakefield Westgate, Leeds and Shipley, but surely a more regular six trains per day (tpd) is preferable.

This is said about Bradford Interchange services.

At Interchange, Grand Central Trains will run at different times to the May 2025 timetable, with King’s Cross journeys up to 20 minutes quicker. One GC each way will call at Peterborough, while some will stop at Pontefract Monkhill on Sundays for the first time.

Note.

1. Trains currently stop at Peterborough, Doncaster, Pontefract Monkhill, Wakefield Kirkgate, Mirfield, Brighouse, Halifax and Low Moor
2. Is the twenty minutes time saving due to the new digital signalling to the South of Doncaster?
3. Is this another open access operator being allowed to do what they do best?

This looks to be a very useful service, which serves several stations, with no other service to London.

Doncaster

This is said about Doncaster services.

Additional trains calling at destinations including Birmingham New Street, Sheffield, York, Newark and Berwick-upon-Tweed. LNER Aberdeen/Inverness trains will call at Doncaster. EMR trains will be retimed at Doncaster to provide better connections with LNER’s revised timetables, but journeys from Doncaster to Sleaford and Spalding will require a change at Lincoln. This change has been made to “enable improved connections” at Peterborough, Sleaford, Lincoln and Doncaster. The number of trains calling at Stevenage falls from 24 to 19 Southbound and 24 to 21 Northbound, with Grantham stops dropping by seven trains to 28 Southbound and 4 to 29 Northbound.

If CrossCountry Trains were to switch their trains to Hitachi InterCity Battery trains, I believe that a version of these trains could handle routes like Plymouth and Aberdeen.

• This would speed up services.
• Trains would run close together and thus increase capacity.
• Services could even be faster.

So expect a replacement order for CrossCountry Trains diesel multiple units soon.

Glasgow

LNER gave up serving Glasgow Central from King’s Cross in the December 2024 timetable change.

In Lumo Will Extend Its King’s Cross And Edinburgh Service To Glasgow, I talked about Lumo extending their King’s Cross and Edinburgh service to Glasgow Central station.

Hull

This is said about Hull services.

On Mondays-Fridays, Hull Trains will provide an extra train from London.

The LNER Monday-Friday Hull-Doncaster train will be withdrawn;

Northern will operate a 20:25 departure to Doncaster; calling at Brough and Selby.

Note.

1. It looks like Great British Railways have surrendered Hull and Beverley to Hull Trains.
2. Hull Trains are converting their Class 802 trains to battery-electric power.
3. It is likely that Hull Trains upgraded trains will be able to use the Great Northern and Great Eastern Joint Line via Lincoln on battery power.

The new timetable appears to be ready for the future of Hull Trains.

Leeds

This is said about Leeds services.

LNER services will depart to King’s Cross at xx.10 and xx.40.

Northern will introduce an extra mostly hourly service between  Leeds and Sheffield calling at Wakefield Westgate. They will depart about 30 minutes earlier or later than the CrossCountry service.

Note.

1. I would expect the two King’s Cross and Leeds services which would both stop at Doncaster and Wakefield Westgate would set the timings between Doncaster and Leeds.
2. Currently, of the four trains that run to and from Leeds every two hours, two are planned to terminate at Leeds, one at Harrogate and one at Bradford Forster Square.
3. There is also a daily service between King’s Cross and Skipton via Leeds.
4. I can envisage another service between  King’s Cross and Ilkley via Leeds, Kirkstall Forge, Guiseley, Burley-in-Wharfedale and Ben Rhydding.
5. I can envisage another service between King’s Cross and Huddersfield, via Leeds, White Rose, Morley, Batley, Dewsbury, Ravensthorpe, Mirfield and Deighton.
6. I can envisage another service between King’s Cross and Hebden Bridge, via Leeds, White Rose, Morley, Batley, Dewsbury, Ravensthorpe, Mirfield, Sowerby Bridge, Mytholmroyd and Brighouse.
7. An alternative to Hebden Bridge would be Rochdale, which already has four platforms and is on the Manchester Metrolink
8. It appears that Bradford Forster Square, Harrogate, Huddersfield, Leeds and Skipton stations can turn nine or ten-car trains and Ilkley can turn five-car trains.
9. I also believe that one of Hitachi’s InterCity Battery trains could use battery power to take the spectacular Settle and Carlisle Line to Carlisle or even Glasgow Central.
10. If needed pairs of five-car trains could split and join at Leeds, with one train waiting at Leeds and the other train going on to another destination.
11. The CrossCountry and Northern Trains services on the Sheffield and Leeds route via Doncaster and Wakefield Westgate would probably need to be modern battery-electric trains to maximise the capacity on the route.

There certainly seem to be opportunities to give a number of stations in Yorkshire an all-electric service to King’s Cross with a two-hourly frequency, in a time of a few minutes over two hours.

Lincoln

This is said about Lincoln services.

One more LNER train from King’s Cross will run, with the first train arriving earlier and the last train later. There will no longer be an LNER train serving Stevenage with passengers having to change at Newark Northgate or Peterborough. An improved service will run to and from Nottingham, with an increase from one to two trains per hour on Mondays-Saturdays. An hourly service will run to Crewe, and a new Matlock-Nottingham-Lincoln-Cleethorpes service will run. EMR will cease all bar morning peak direct trains to/from Leicester. Newark Northgate-Lincoln trains will be reduced from five to four on Mondays-Fridays, eight to four on Saturdays and ten to eight on Sundays.

Note.

1. Travellers between Lincoln/Nottingham and the North/Scotland will have two trains per hour to Newark Northgate, where there will be two tph to the North/Scotland.
2. The hourly Crewe service will give access to Liverpool Manchester and the West Coast Main Line.
3. Will there still be a Liverpool and Norwich service or will this be replaced by East-West Rail?

There seems to be a big sort out to EMR services.

Newcastle

This is said about Newcastle services.

The number of trains serving King’s Cross increases from 35 to 53 Southbound on weekdays and from 36 to 52 Northbound. One train every hour will run non-stop to York. More TPE trains will run Northbound (see Alnmouth and Berwick), while Northern is retiming services on the Northumberland Line in anticipation of Northumberland Park and Bedlington stations opening in early 2026. A semi-fast hourly service between Newcastle and Middlesbrough will run on Mondays-Saturdays and there will be an hourly stopping service between them.

Note.

1. There will be a big increase in services between King’s Cross and Newcastle.
2. Is the aim to persuade travellers to use trains rather than airlines?
3. LNER also runs one train per day (tpd) between King’s Cross and Middlesbrough.
4. Grand Central Trains will be running at a frequency of six tpd between King’s Cross and Sunderland via Thirsk, Northallerton, Eaglescliffe, Hartlepool and Seaham.

Hull appears to have been left to Hull Trains and Glasgow to Lumo, and Sunderland appears to be left for Grand Central Trains.

Conclusions

I am coming to some conclusions about services on the East Coast Main Line, with respect to Sheffield.

Doncaster Is A Well-Equipped Station

Doncaster is the nearest station to Sheffield on the East Coast Main Line.

• Over the last few years, Doncaster station has been improved.
• It has a subway with a more than adequate number of lifts.
• The station has nearly 600 parking spaces.
• There is a taxi rank.
• There is no Marks & Spencer’s food store, which is important for a coeliac like me.
• There are thirty bus stands close to Doncaster station.
• Doncaster station is well-equipped with cafes, a pub and coffee stalls.
• All trains to Aberdeen, Bradford Forster Square, Bradford Interchange, Edinburgh, Hull, King’s Cross, Leeds, Sheffield and Wakefield seem to stop at the station.
• There are several local trains per hour.
• Changing trains is not a strenuous exercise.

Doncaster is one of the UK’s better regional stations.

Doncaster Needs A Connection To The Sheffield Supertram

One of the first things, I do when I arrive in a strange town or city is look for the local public transport network.

In 2019, Sheffield published an ambitious plan for their tram network, which I wrote about in Sheffield Region Transport Plan 2019 – Doncaster Sheffield Airport.

The post contained this map, of Sheffield’s plans for the trams.

Doncaster and Doncaster Sheffield Airport are connected to the current end of the tram-train route at Rotherham Parkgate.

This OpenRailwayMap shows the rail lines between Rotherham Parkgate and Doncaster.

Note.

1. Doncaster station is in the North-East corner of the map.
2. Rotherham Central station is in the South-West corner of the map.
3. The blue arrow in the South-West corner indicates Rotherham Parkgate tram stop.
4. Swinton, Mexborough and Conisbrough stations can be picked out.
5. The dotted red line running North-South across the map is the route of the ill-fated Eastern Leg of High Speed Two.

It is a simple application of tram-train technology to connect Doncaster station and Doncaster Sheffield Airport to the Sheffield Supertram.

With all the comings and goings on the East Coast Main Line at Doncaster station, I believe that the tram-train connection to Sheffield and Rotherham is essential.

The Cities Of Bradford, Doncaster, Leeds, Sheffield and Wakefield Can Have a High-Frequency Rail Connection

Consider.

• Four stations are all step-free with a bridge or subway served by lifts.
• Bradford Forster Square station has level access to the platforms from the street.
• The rail lines between the five stations are electrified, with the exception of Sheffield and Doncaster.
• Services between the cities are run by CrossCountry Trains, Grand Central Trains, Hull Trains, LNER and Northern Trains.
• Most maximum speeds are not unduly slow.

Consequently the five cities can have a high-frequency rail connection in excess of four tph.

Could this be the basis of a Five-Cities Metro?

Open Access Services

There are six open access services running on the East Coast Main Line.

• Grand Central Trains – King’s Cross-Bradford Interchange via Peterborough, Doncaster, Pontefract Monkhill, Wakefield Kirkgate, Mirfield, Brighouse, Halifax and Low Moor – 4 tpd
• Grand Central Trains – King’s Cross-Sunderland via Peterborough, York, Thirsk, Northallerton, Eaglescliffe and Hartlepool – 6 tpd
• Hull Trains – King’s Cross-Hull via Stevenage, Grantham, Retford, Doncaster, Selby, Howden, Brough – 4 tpd
• Hull Trains – King’s Cross-Beverley via Stevenage, Grantham, Retford, Doncaster, Selby, Howden, Brough, Hull and Cottingham  – 2 tpd
• Lumo – King’s Cross-Edinbugh via Stevenage, Newcastle and Morpeth – 5 tpd
• Lumo – King’s Cross-Glasgow Queen Street via Stevenage, Newcastle, Morpeth, Edinburgh and Falkirk High – 2 tpd

Note.

1. tpd is trains per day.
2. All seem to serve an exclusive area, except Lumo.
3. In a couple of years, all could be using Hitachi trains.
4. I suspect some services will swap their diesel generators for batteries.

Battery-power would allow some services to be zero-carbon, even when using the GNGE diversion.

September 22, 2025 Posted by AnonW | Transport/Travel | Aberdeen Station, Alnmouth Station, Berwick-on-Tweed Station, Beverley Station, Bradford Forster Square Station, CrossCountry Trains, Doncaster Sheffield Airport, Doncaster Station, East Coast Main Line, Edinburgh Station, Great British Railways, Great Northern and Great Eastern Joint Line (GNGE), Hebden Bridge Station, High Speed Two Eastern Leg, Hitachi Intercity Battery Train, Hull Station, Hull Trains, LNER, Manchester Metrolink, Open Access Operators, Rochdale Station, Rotherham Central Station, Rotherham Parkgate Tram Stop, Settle And Carlisle Line, Sheffield Station, Sheffield Supertram, Sheffield Tram-Train, Skipton Station, Step-Free, West Coast Main Line | Leave a comment