Train bosses say they are working to reinstate pre-Covid levels of service in Lichfield – but say it will not happen until the middle of next year at the earliest.
The pandemic saw the number of Cross City Line trains an hour drop from four to two as passenger levels fell.
West Midlands Railway has now confirmed that they still intend to restore the previous frequency of services for stations at Shenstone, Lichfield City and Lichfield Trent Valley.
But in a letter to Sir Michael Fabricant, Conservative parliamentary candidate for Lichfield, the operator said an exact timeframe for the changes was not available due to “operational and financial challenges”.
Andrew McGill, from parent company West Midlands Trains, said:
“With passenger numbers now growing again, it is our intention to restore 4 trains per hour to Lichfield – and 6 trains per hour along the length of the Cross City Line – at some point in the future.
“At this stage we do not have a confirmed date for this level of service to resume, although the earliest it will be is mid-2025 as we work through a number of operational and financial challenges.
“To return four trains per hour to Lichfield we must demonstrate a compelling business case to the Department for Transport and solve capacity challenges, including those caused by the under-construction Camp Hill Line in south Birmingham.”
Andrew McGill
Mr McGill said that while the number of trains were still being tackled, the introduction of new rolling stock was taking place.
“I can confirm the rollout of our new Class 730 electric train fleet on the Cross City Line to Lichfield is continuing apace.
“The entire route will be served by new trains by the autumn, bringing extra capacity and comfort to Lichfield rail passengers as we phase out our existing 30-year-old trains.
“Looking further ahead, over the next 12 to 18 months we will be introducing new, longer Class 730 trains at Lichfield Trent Valley on our long-distance London Northwestern Railway routes as we continue our £1billion investment in new trains and infrastructure.”
Andrew McGill
Sir Michael said he had raised the issue following a meeting of the Lichfield Rail Promotion Group. He said:
“This is very good news and both the group and I will return to this if we have not seen plans for extra services in 12 months from now.
“Combined with the additional Avanti West Coast trains north to south and better connectivity to Birmingham and the West Midlands, Lichfield will see a growth in rail commuters living in the area.
“All of this is excellent news for our local economy and the desirability of the area.”
Sir Michael Fabricant
While ticket and annual tickets have continued to rise at above inflation prices the service has stubbornly remained at the Covid19 emergency levels. Not great value or service.
You might have thought that increases would be frozen until the services were restored. It is the case of the phantom train service.
Four trains and HR would be great if the actual train line was open…….lost count of the amount of times lately the line is shut for varying reasons ……..all this week for work at gravelly hill……not great at all if you work in birmingham.