Chiltern targets Colmore Business District with new London services

RAIL firm Chiltern Railways is stepping up its bid to win passengers from rival firms by launching a new faster service to London from the heart of Birmingham’s business district.

From next month the company is introducing a new service to the capital from Snow Hill station, off Colmore Row. Currently its Mainline service to London operates from Moor Street meaning many commuters have to trek across the city from their offices in the business district in order to catch the train.

However, the new service, which is operational from December 10, means they can leave their offices and be on board a train in a matter of minutes.

The move strikes a major blow for Chiltern is its battle to secure business from the West Coast Main Line, currently operated by Virgin Trains.

Chiltern said the decision to introduce the new service, which is part of a major timetable overhaul, had been taken after direct consultation with corporate travellers.

The Snow Hill to London services will operate between 0650 and 0915, reducing the overall journey time from Snow Hill by up to 22 minutes.

All trains leaving London Marylebone between 1730 and 2200 will also stop at Birmingham Snow Hill, as the company said it was aiming to make return journeys as convenient as possible.

The company is also targeting corporate commuters heading in the opposite direction with a 0715 train from Marylebone arriving at Snow Hill at 0859.

Since the launch of Mainline last September, there has been a huge increase in the number of passengers opting to travel with Chiltern Railways rather than the West Coast.  The increased demand has resulted in the introduction of more silver trains, equipped with the Chiltern’s Business Zone and espresso bar. On-board facilities include free Wi-Fi, bigger seats and more plug sockets and tables.

The firm has also introduced fare structures which are designed to compete against the West Coast operator.

Thomas Ableman, Commercial Director at Chiltern Railways, said: “Over the past year, we have seen a phenomenal increase in the numbers of passengers using our new Mainline service between Birmingham and London.

“To make it even easier for our passengers, from December we will be transforming the service to Colmore Business District via Snow Hill with fast, direct trains through both morning and evening peak hours.

“This will be the first time that the business district has inter-city style services direct to and from London and we know that these fast trains, combined with our great value fares, will result in more West Coast passengers permanently moving over to the Chiltern line.”

Additional changes to the timetable mean:
•    Chiltern will offer the first train of the day out of Birmingham to London by any operator, departing Birmingham Moor Street  at 0515 and calling at Solihull at 0524, arriving in London at 0700
•    Birmingham passengers will be able to catch three silver train services from London Marylebone at 1647, 1715 and 1815 in the evening peak
•    The introduction of silver trains to and from London at weekends, departing Birmingham Moor Street at 0755, 0955 and 1355 on Saturdays and 1013 on Sundays.

The train operator is also providing an additional 5,000 seats across the network over the weekend to meet the current and future demand.

Commuters from Dorridge will have five fast morning peak services to London, departing at 0600, 0624, 0650, 0726 and 0824 and all arriving into the capital in less than 100 minutes.