Extra service between Yorkshire and London

TRAIN operator National Express East Coast is to add an extra Friday evening train service to its route linking London with Yorkshire and the North East.

The additional train is being launched on Friday (and will leave London King's Cross at 7.27pm, calling at York at 9.12pm, Darlington at 9.53pm and Durham at 10.12pm before arriving in Newcastle at 10.30pm.

National Express East Coast managing director David Franks said: “We're delighted to be able to provide this additional Friday evening train service, which will help to create more space on the preceding 7pm northbound train from London.

“At National Express we plan to attract many more passengers to the East Coast Main Line, with extra services reaching out to new destinations, including a brand new direct service to Lincoln from 2010.”

The new Friday evening train from London to Newcastle brings the total number of weekday services operated by National Express East Coast to 137. It adds a minimum of 530 additional seats to the route.

National Express East Coast began operating trains on the East Coast Main Line on December 9, 2007. The route carries 17.4m passengers a year.