London North Eastern Railway (LNER) has announced that new Azuma services will be introduced between Lincoln and London King’s Cross from Monday 21 October 2019.
The Azuma services will be the first wave of new LNER trains between the two cities.
Azuma trains will begin operating weekday services in each direction alongside the existing daily LNER High Speed Train (HST) service from 21 October, with tickets on sale from Friday 30 August.
David Horne, Managing Director at LNER, said: “Azuma trains will not only revolutionise the customer experience for those who travel with us between Lincoln and London but open up huge economic benefits for the city and wider area thanks to the increase of services from one train each way to six return services.”
“With these new regular services in both directions, offering journey times from December of just under two hours between London and Lincoln, it offers significantly more opportunities for business travel, tourists and the many international visitors wanting to experience the many historic and cultural attractions Lincoln proudly offers including the magnificent Cathedral, Castle and stunning views from the Medieval Wall.”
The Azuma fleet will provide a two-hourly Monday to Friday service departing London at 10:06,12:06, 14:06 and 16:06. Southbound services will depart Lincoln at 11:18, 13:23, 15:26 and 17:14.
The current 07:30 Lincoln to London and return service from London at 19:06 will be replaced by an Azuma train later in the year as the transformation of LNER services on the route continues.
Full details of the additional train times are already included in the current LNER timetable as the introduction of the new Azuma fleet was anticipated ahead of the next timetable change in December.
A sixth daily return weekday service will be introduced as part of the December timetable change, alongside five additional services on Saturdays. The Saturday Azuma service will be introduced from Saturday 7 December to provide extra seats for people wishing to visit the popular Lincoln Christmas Markets. From the December timetable change, there will be five services in each direction on Sundays.
The current 07:30 Lincoln to London and return service from London at 19:06 will be replaced by an Azuma train later in the year as the transformation of LNER services on the route continues.
Full details of the additional train times are already included in the current LNER timetable as the introduction of the new Azuma fleet was anticipated ahead of the next timetable change in December.
A sixth daily return weekday service will be introduced as part of the December timetable change, alongside five additional services on Saturdays. The Saturday Azuma service will be introduced from Saturday 7 December to provide extra seats for people wishing to visit the popular Lincoln Christmas Markets. From the December timetable change, there will be five services in each direction on Sundays.
From the best ever WiFi, plug sockets at every seat and more legroom in Standard class to extra space for bags, ergonomically designed seats and an excellent range of refreshments served at seat or from the Cafe Bar, the new Azuma fleet will transform the journey experience.
The Azuma fleet offers significant environmental benefits. Azuma trains will run using overhead electric wires between London and Newark North Gate. The bimode Azuma fleet will then operate under diesel power for the short stretch between Newark and Lincoln. The modern engines will cut harmful emissions by 90 per cent compared to existing diesel-only High Speed Trains.
An innovative traffic light seat reservation system above seats in Standard and First Class will make it easier for customers to find reserved or available seats on-board.
Communities and customers at stations across the route will benefit from cleaner air and substantially lower noise pollution levels thanks to the Azuma trains being quieter than the existing fleet which will be fully replaced by June 2020.
Communities and customers at stations across the route will benefit from cleaner air and substantially lower noise pollution levels thanks to the Azuma trains being quieter than the existing fleet which will be fully replaced by June 2020.
