On the 14th of December the new Northern timetable will bring benefits to Bishop line passengers. Trains will run from earlier in the morning and finish later in the evening meaning there will be an extra service each day all through the week.
The changes are positive but frequent passengers are advised to check their journey plans in advance.
The timetable changes mean that from December, trains will run approximately half an hour later than they did on the May timetable, so if you are used to catching the 08:27 from Bishop Auckland to get you into Darlington before 9 for school, college or work, that will now be the 08:53 which will arrive in Darlington at 09:19, so you’ll need to catch the 07:51 to get you into Darlington before 9am.
All services will continue through to Saltburn.
Felicity Machnicki, Officer for the Bishop Line Community Rail Partnership comments “It’s great to see an improved service between Bishop Auckland and Darlington allowing better connections locally and to the wider rail network. Most importantly, this is a great opportunity to try travelling by train on the Bishop Line for all sorts of trips, whether it’s to work or college, for shopping trips or for an evening out.”
From December, the first train from Bishop Auckland to Darlington, Monday to Saturday, will leave at 06:49 arriving at Darlington at 07:16, this is around 40 minutes earlier than the first train on the May timetable. The first train from Darlington to Bishop Auckland will leave at 06:17, this is around half an hour earlier than in the old timetable.
From December, the last train from Bishop Auckland to Darlington will now leave at 21:53 arriving at Darlington at 22:19, around 25 mins later than on the May timetable. The last train from Darlington to Bishop Auckland will now leave at 21:23 arriving at Bishop Auckland at 21:48, almost half an hour later than on the old timetable. This means passengers can enjoy a little more time on their evenings out, to perhaps enjoy an extra scoop of ice-cream!
For those commuting to London, from December, passengers will be able to connect from Bishop Auckland to London King’s Cross earlier than they could on the old timetable. The early train will leave Bishop Auckland at 06:49, passengers can change at Darlington onto the 07:35, arriving at Kings Cross at 10:03. On the old timetable, the earliest connection from Bishop Auckland to King’s Cross was 07:27 connecting at Darlington at 08:08, arriving at Kings Cross at 10:39.
The journey home will also be better for those working in London, passengers will be able to catch the 18:33 from King’s Cross which arrives at Darlington at 21:05, then travel on to Bishop Auckland on the 21:23 arriving at 21:48.
Please check your arrival time when planning your journey. You can use the Northern app or visit the Northern website to check your specific train times. https://www.northernrailway.co.uk/
