Fight the cuts to Bedwyn trains says Bedwyn Trains Passenger Group 

Since the pandemic there have many cuts to the train service on the London Paddington to Bedwyn line in both directions. The original daily 27 departures (19 direct to Paddington) have been reduced to 20 departures of which only 6 are direct to Paddington, sometimes requiring more than one change. The 25 daily arrivals, (16 direct from Paddington) have been reduced to 20 with only 3 direct from Paddington. The Bedwyn Trains Passenger Group (BTPG) have been lobbying GWR, our local MP, Danny Kruger and Laura Farris MP requesting that they press the Department of Transport for more funds to rectify the problems. They urge people to join their campaign by joining their email list info@bedwyntrains.org.uk and/or writing to Danny Kruger MP.

Last week Bill Wells and Steve Smith from the BTPG met with senior management at GWR Swindon. Steve Smith commented, “What we presented to GWR illustrates the folly of turning a very good service into a mish-mash of connecting (or non-connecting) trains, with the notable exception of the morning peak.

In the very short term, the May timetable has a serious flaw in the evening service and we have asked GWR to try to fix this. The 1907 Paddington departure will require a change at Newbury.

The May timetable also has a flaw with the first off-peak morning service. Currently the 0831 is direct to Paddington (journey time 1:03). With the proposed May timetable the 0831 is to be withdrawn, so the first off-peak would be the 0849 to Newbury, requiring two changes and a journey time to Paddington of 1:35.

In May the current 0924 turbo is moved to 0948, also with two changes and a much extended journey time. We have asked GWR if they can operate the 0831 as a through service. If implemented, this would also enable the 0924 to be retained. We have not yet had any indication as to whether this will be implemented.

We, at BTPG have campaigned since 2009 to try to prevent reductions in services. We are concerned that passenger numbers could decline which may, in turn, be used as a reason not to restore services. Therefore, we would urge everyone to continue to use the trains whenever they can, but to also push for the restoration of through trains as soon as possible.”