| Improvements at South Eastern Posted by grahame at 06:55, 9th September 2026 |     |
From the South Eastern Press Office
Express service to cut Hastings to London journey times from December
* New weekday express service between Hastings and Charing Cross launches from 14 December.
* Fastest journey time of 1 hour 18 minutes from Hastings to London Bridge, and 1 hour 28 minutes to Charing Cross - around 14 minutes quicker than today's fastest peak service.
* Part of a wider December timetable change delivering more frequent services, better connections and increased capacity across south-east London, Kent and East Sussex.
South Eastern Railway will introduce an express weekday service between Hastings and Charing Cross from December, cutting the total journey time to London Bridge by 14 minutes for customers travelling from Hastings, Battle and Tunbridge Wells.
* New weekday express service between Hastings and Charing Cross launches from 14 December.
* Fastest journey time of 1 hour 18 minutes from Hastings to London Bridge, and 1 hour 28 minutes to Charing Cross - around 14 minutes quicker than today's fastest peak service.
* Part of a wider December timetable change delivering more frequent services, better connections and increased capacity across south-east London, Kent and East Sussex.
South Eastern Railway will introduce an express weekday service between Hastings and Charing Cross from December, cutting the total journey time to London Bridge by 14 minutes for customers travelling from Hastings, Battle and Tunbridge Wells.
Further down the release
This service forms part of a wider package of improvements being introduced across Kent, East Sussex and south-east London from December. Customers on the Hastings line will benefit from the return of half-hourly semi-fast services between Tunbridge Wells and Charing Cross throughout the day on weekdays and Saturdays, alongside additional late-evening journeys to and from Hastings. Customers on the Maidstone East line will benefit from more frequent services, additional direct trains to Charing Cross and, for the first time, a train to Charing Cross every hour on Sundays, creating a train to London approximately every 30 minutes when combined with existing Victoria services.
On the Isle of Sheppey, customers at Sheerness-on-Sea, Queenborough and Kemsley will gain trains every 30 minutes throughout the day, seven days a week, delivering the most frequent timetable on the line in 30 years and improving connections at Sittingbourne.
Other timetable improvements include:
* Half-hourly semi-fast services between Charing Cross and Tunbridge Wells throughout off-peak periods on weekdays and across Saturdays, providing more frequent journeys to Orpington, Sevenoaks, Tonbridge & Tunbridge Wells.
* Restored half-hourly services between Victoria and Ashford via Maidstone East throughout the day, alongside additional direct Charing Cross services.
* Additional 16:58 evening peak service between Cannon Street and Ashford via Tonbridge and Headcorn, providing extra capacity at the busiest time of the day
* Two trains an hour throughout the day, seven days a week, on the Sheerness branch, providing the best timetable on the line for 30 years and better connections at Sittingbourne.
* A more connected Metro network across south-east London, with almost all Metro routes operating at least four trains an hour during the daytime from Monday to Saturday and improved links to the Elizabeth line at Abbey Wood.
* More frequent services on the Bexleyheath line, including up to six trains an hour and half hourly all day direct services to Charing Cross.
The December timetable builds on improvements introduced in May this year, including additional peak-time capacity on Highspeed routes serving Canterbury West and Thanet, helping create a more frequent and better-connected railway across Kent, East Sussex and south-east London.
Southeastern has also submitted a business case to the Department for Transport for a new Metro train fleet, supporting its longer-term ambition to improve capacity and accessibility across the network.
On the Isle of Sheppey, customers at Sheerness-on-Sea, Queenborough and Kemsley will gain trains every 30 minutes throughout the day, seven days a week, delivering the most frequent timetable on the line in 30 years and improving connections at Sittingbourne.
Other timetable improvements include:
* Half-hourly semi-fast services between Charing Cross and Tunbridge Wells throughout off-peak periods on weekdays and across Saturdays, providing more frequent journeys to Orpington, Sevenoaks, Tonbridge & Tunbridge Wells.
* Restored half-hourly services between Victoria and Ashford via Maidstone East throughout the day, alongside additional direct Charing Cross services.
* Additional 16:58 evening peak service between Cannon Street and Ashford via Tonbridge and Headcorn, providing extra capacity at the busiest time of the day
* Two trains an hour throughout the day, seven days a week, on the Sheerness branch, providing the best timetable on the line for 30 years and better connections at Sittingbourne.
* A more connected Metro network across south-east London, with almost all Metro routes operating at least four trains an hour during the daytime from Monday to Saturday and improved links to the Elizabeth line at Abbey Wood.
* More frequent services on the Bexleyheath line, including up to six trains an hour and half hourly all day direct services to Charing Cross.
The December timetable builds on improvements introduced in May this year, including additional peak-time capacity on Highspeed routes serving Canterbury West and Thanet, helping create a more frequent and better-connected railway across Kent, East Sussex and south-east London.
Southeastern has also submitted a business case to the Department for Transport for a new Metro train fleet, supporting its longer-term ambition to improve capacity and accessibility across the network.
Part of me has a twinge of jealousy - but just a twinge. I am happy for the people who live and want to travel along the corridor, and I am delighted at the example being set.
It shows me that innovative changes can be made at a timetable recast - and could be done in the recast that SWR (rather than SER) are preparing for December 2027 - it sets a precedent for improvements, such as joining up the Bristol -> Salisbury service to the Salisbury -> Waterloo service
It acknowledged that services from residential areas into the centre of London to different termini throughout the day are a useful / wanted / required service, and with that is a reminder that Paddington is not Waterloo and that services from Bath and Westbury to both termini will be servicing different markets rather than competing with each other
It confirms the need for two trains an hour - or four or six per hours in the inner suburbs - for a Metro service suitable for daily lives in the areas
Based on previous experience, there may be teething troubles and I really hope that SER have the stock, staff and track capacity to deliver at least 90% of the trains they promise - but then with the frequency timetabled, if a train is cancelled there will be another one along at a maximum of 30 minutes later. What a contrast to my home station where a cancellation leaves the next one not along until 120 minutes later, and because that's likely to be the same train or crew it's liable to be cancelled too. Give us the 30 minute service and we'll fill the trains, especially with the 80% uplift in new house numbers that's planned
| Re: Improvements at South Eastern Posted by Mark A at 09:45, 9th September 2026 | |
From the South Eastern Press Office
* More frequent services on the Bexleyheath line, including up to six trains an hour and half hourly all day direct services to Charing Cross.
* More frequent services on the Bexleyheath line, including up to six trains an hour and half hourly all day direct services to Charing Cross.
That sounds as though it rolls back a llittle further on that DfT decision to run the entirety of various services to Cannon Street and use London Bridge, with its escalators* that are of such a length that they're bespoke items, as an interchange for Waterloo and Charing Cross.
*Well, the favoured platforms have escalators, their provision at London Bridge is not universal.
